


För Inn í Rún

by Leikr (Muninnsenna)



Category: Marvel (Comics), Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Avengers: Endgame (Movie) Compliant, Gen, Other Additional Tags to Be Added
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-27
Updated: 2020-06-16
Packaged: 2021-03-01 04:20:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 13
Words: 48,627
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23339026
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Muninnsenna/pseuds/Leikr
Summary: After defeating Thanos the world settles down to rebuild and heal.  In Paris, a young boy with green eyes lives by his wits while in Norway a reluctant valkyrie takes up the reins of leadership as her king travels across the stars.  Basically a story of how the folds of fate intertwine to bring them back together.
Relationships: Loki & Thor (Marvel)
Comments: 40
Kudos: 89





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> Hey. So, this is actually my first time posting here on the site as well as my first time writing for this fandom. Hopefully this isn't too bad. Knowledge of JiM and AoA might help but it would be possible to read this without that. I'll probably change the summary as well once I get a little more sorted out. I hate summaries... Anyway, please enjoy!

_“No resurrections this time.”_ The words echoed in his mind. The last thing he’d heard before… His mind shied away from the thought. No matter his feelings in the past, he hadn’t wanted to die. Lying in the darkness, though, Loki finally felt almost at peace. No more lying to those he cared about, no more pretending that everything was fine when whenever he closed his eyes he still felt himself falling through the void. No more fear of what would happen when Thanos caught up with him. Still, he wasn’t completely content; as he’d told Thor, satisfaction was hardly in his nature.

That thought led him to his brother, another topic he’d been hoping to avoid in his last moments. _“You really are the worst, brother.”_ The last words Thor had said to him and words which made his chest hurt more than his throat. Thor wouldn’t have understood; he’d done what he’d had to to keep him alive. Thanos wouldn’t have hesitated to kill his brother and Loki, for all of his faults, couldn’t allow that to happen. He’d known from the moment he’d caught sight of the Tesseract while fleeing from Asgard’s vaults what would happen if he did not collect it. The mad titan had sworn to find him if he failed, no matter where he hid and with Asgard fallen it had only been a matter of time. At least the Valkyrie had been able to escape with some of their people. More than would have survived had Loki not had what he’d been searching for. Thor… Loki prayed his brother had survived his death. He’d done everything to ensure that. His job was over now. 

Still… Guilt again surged through him. He had lied to Thor yet again. Was that all he would ever be known for? _I assure you, brother, the sun will shine on us again.”_ He’d told Thor that. Maybe his brother wouldn’t be so mad at him for this small lie. Loki had only ever caused his older brother pain, after all. Surely the thought of him returning yet again from apparent death would be seen as more of a threat than something Thor would desire. Despite being the god of Lies he was apparently utterly, woefully incapable of lying to himself. He would have laughed if he could have moved, could have felt something other than the growing numbness. This was the end, then. Even Loki’s determination, his love for his brother wouldn’t bring him back from this. His eyes, open despite the lack of light, began to shut as he felt the world fading around him. 

“I wasn’t expecting this. Loki doesn’t usually die without some sort of plan for coming back.” A woman’s voice noted but Loki was too far gone, too tired to open his eyes. Let the Norns judge him as they would. He already knew he had no chance of ending up in Valhalla. His best shot would be Folkvangr and he had no illusions as to his getting into there. Helheim it was, then. Hela would be thrilled to see him, he was sure.

“Is this ‘the end’, then? Another voice asked, sounding more uncertain than the first. Not the Norns, then.

"No. Well, not the one we were going to skip ahead to, at any rate. I made a few detours." The first voice replied before suddenly sounding hesitant. "That is alright with you, isn't it, Verity?" 

The second woman sighed. "Well, we're already here and I don't exactly have any plans." Came the slightly sarcastic response. "So what exactly are we doing here, then?" 

"Well, I figured why is it only fair for one Loki to get a second chance? There are an awful lot of us spread throughout realities. This Loki changed from the story and died because of it. Why not give him a second chance?" came the eager response. Loki was barely following the conversation by that point, and not just because it didn't make sense. The apathy which had been starting to creep in earlier had nearly consumed him, a fact the small part of him which was still Loki noted with concern. The rest simply let the words wash over him, meaningless and intangible.

"Right. So, how is this going to work, then? He's already fading away." 

"What? Oh shoot. You're right. I'll have to work fast." A moment of silence before the voice sounded again. "Huh… It's like deja vu." The voice said, and there was a slight, almost imperceptible hitch to the words. A shifting of cloth followed before the voice sounded again, this time next to his ear. "Best of luck, little Loki." She whispered, breath just barely ghosting against his skin before his senses finally faded away and he fell for a second time into darkness. 


	2. Past Friends and Future Allies

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> After having a bad day I figured I'd post this and make myself feel a little better. Not sure how often I'll update but probably at least once a week. I have most of the first half written up since I wrote this for NaNoWriMo but after that it might be slow going for updates. Thank you so much to everyone who has commented or left a kudos!

The signs of the snap still lingered, despite the fact that it had been nearly four months since the death of half the Earth's population had been undone. Paris was in disrepair and the streets littered with trash the survivors hadn't been able to keep ahead of. There were attempts to fix the problems, of course, but they had yet to reach the areas of town Serrure frequented. Still, he was currently heading for one of the nicer districts so his surroundings were already cleaner than he was used to. 

That statement alone made him stand out, even among the returned. Everyone else who had returned had seen the streets cleaner, no matter what walk of life they had come from. Even beggars had been to the tourist districts, after all. The only ones who hadn’t seen the world any other way were those who had been born in the five years after the snap and most of them were too young to really talk to. He was an outcast in both groups. 

“Serrure!” A voice called from behind him, pulling him out of his thoughts as he turned. Enzo was picking his way over to him, grinning. “You want to team up today?” he asked, and Serrure shook his head.

“Sorry. I have plans. Maybe tomorrow?” he offered. Enzo was a skilled pickpocket and usually he complimented Serrure’s style but today he wasn’t expecting to be collecting only a couple euros per person. Oh no. Actually, Enzo’s presence would be detrimental to his plans. The other eyed him, eyes narrowed, before shaking his head.

“Right. Well, if you hit it big you’ll be sure to share, won’t you?” he asked, tone of voice indicating that it wasn’t a question. Serrure nodded silently. While they often worked together, the streets could be cut-throat. As long as Enzo felt respected he was happy to look after Serrure, who was a few years younger. If he ever felt that Serrure was holding out on him his beneficent attitude could rapidly change. 

Hurriedly crossing the street, Serrure ducked into another alley, using it as a short-cut. He still slid to the side after exiting, waiting to be sure Enzo wasn’t following him before peeling back away from the wall and continuing forward. He felt a little bad about lying to Enzo after the other had taken him in when he’d first found himself on the streets but he needed the money he was going to earn from this job. 

He was pulled out of his thoughts by the noise of the crowd up ahead and Serrure shook his head to clear it. No point worrying about Enzo unless the other caught him, after all. About two weeks ago he’d read about a conference between the world’s leaders which was going to be held today, in Paris. If anyone might have money they could toss around, it would surely be them. There was a significant chance he could make a fair amount of money off of this, if he played his cards right. Unable to help but grin at the pun, Serrure slipped through the crowd, deftly maneuvering until he arrived at the position he’d picked out the day before. It wasn’t near the front door; setting up there would be too obvious. Instead he’d chosen the street corner closest to the nearest hotel which was still in good condition, figuring that with the current state of affairs most of the delegates would be staying there rather than trying to stay further away and having to try to drive their fancy cars through streets which may or may not be impassable. 

His plan could only work now, while the world was still in such disarray. Security would still be lax as people dealt with the returned which meant the area wasn’t fully cordoned off. Besides which, he needed the press, and not just because they were earning money just by being there so might be willing to ‘donate’ some to him. No, they would serve to make the various dignitaries feel pressured to give him some money as well. Nothing like the threat of being seen to refuse money to a starving kid on national television to make people open up their pockets. It was no guarantee but he was hoping it would work on some of them, at least.

Smiling to himself, Serrure hurriedly set up the small table he’d been carrying folded up and slung over one shoulder before pulling out a ragged deck of cards, starting to deftly shuffle them as he launched into his patter, by now more than familiar. “Here we go, here we go, here we go. Sharp eyes and sharp minds…” He continued to speak as his mind noted the responses from the nearby press, adjusting his words to his audience as he spoke to them. “Won’t you play a game with old Serrure? Seems pretty boring to just stand around. I can help with that. All you have to do is bet a euro, then choose the right card. If you’re right, I’ll double your money.” he said as one of the technicians finally moved over, pulling out a bill. The trick would be to win some himself so he could afford to double someone’s wager while also letting enough people win to keep them entertained. Thankfully he was quite skilled at holding attention.

“Oh, so sorry sir. It looks like old Serrure wins this time. Still, you were very close! The Jack was one card over.” he told the man with a bright smile, the money disappearing into the pocket of his hoodie. 

“Here. Let me try again.” the man said, fishing out another bill even as more of the assembled press broke ranks, moving forward to watch. Serrure smiled, shuffling the cards. 

“Just keep your eyes on the Jack. One Jack, two Queens. I’m sure you’ll be able to keep your eye on the one that counts without being distracted.” he said with a wink that drew laughs from some of the nearby men. By the time emissaries began to arrive and the press withdrew to their previous positions (more than a few slipping him a couple of extra francs with winks and jokes), Serrure had already made over thirty francs, more than he had made before in a whole day of work. Grinning back at his new ‘friends’, he continued to speak, focusing on the various people passing by as he addressed them. A few sped by in an obvious attempt to pretend to ignore him while others simply dropped money on the table, not even bothering to play (not that Serrure minded). He was busy with a threesome dressed in very foreign, formal attire (and the fourth who was also dressed up but had more of an air of someone on guard) when something disrupted his concentration. 

“Lackey?!”

* * *

Brunhilde was dawdling and she knew it. That didn’t make the thought of taking all the drinks in the hotel provided wine cooler and spending the day drunk off her a** any less unappealing. Unfortunately, her current position as leader of Asgard (she refused to be called ‘Queen’) meant she couldn’t just ignore her duties. She hadn’t been able to enjoy a good drink in years, actually. She’d spent the five years after the snap watching as Asgard’s rightful king drank himself into oblivion and after the reversal of the snap Thor had abdicated so he could flee into space, not even giving her the slightest hint of when he might return. So she was really a placeholder for the rightful king. But seeing as how he wasn’t here she was going to have to do. 

Letting out a sigh, she got up and moved to the mirror next to the door, checking her appearance. The brightly polished armor seemed to glow despite the lack of sunlight in the room and her cape displayed none of the wear of battle. Ceremonial clothes. Ugh. Appearances were important, though; she’d learned that on the Statesman from… Well, she’d learned it. Thor had, of course, been the target of that particular tirade but she figured, given her current position, it probably applied to her as well. Taking a deep breath to steady her nerves, Brunhilde stepped out of the room, beginning to make her way towards the meeting hall. This was going to be the first time she officially stood for Asgard’s people since being given the throne. How she despised politics; if only Asgard’s rightful king were here… She was a guard, a protector of the throne, not a diplomat! Still, she’d once sworn a vow to the throne which had recently been reaffirmed, so she’d do her job to the best of her abilities. 

Making her way down the street, lost in her thoughts (grim as they were towards her king; she refused to think of this as anything other than a vacation despite fearing otherwise), Brunhilde noted the Wakandan royal family in front of her, brightening as she picked up her pace. Now there were people she could get along with! Fellow warriors. Approaching, she almost missed the boy standing next to them. Shuri was digging through her purse for some coins, laughing.

“Oh come now, brother. You must admit that the trick was very well done. If even the Black Panther could not see where the card went then there must be some skill involved. He’s more than earned this.” she said, placing the money on the table where it was rapidly snatched up. 

“Shuri, Your Majesty, Queen Mo-” Brunhilde’s mind suddenly ground to a halt. She knew that face, although it was much younger than she was used to, along with the green eyes and the ever present sparkle in them. “Lackey?!” she exclaimed, shock, anger, and surprise warring for dominance. Had Loki somehow survived Thanos? Why was he here, playing card games, when Thor had fallen apart from guilt and loss? 

The boy blinked up at her and Brunhilde realized that there was no sign of recognition in his gaze as his words trailed off. Gaze flickering to the ceremonial armor and the sword strapped to her hip, he swallowed before lifting his gaze back to her face. “I’m sorry, are you talking to me?” he asked, the All Speak noticeable now that she was paying attention. The boy looked at her warily, gaze darting around in a way she could only guess was to look for possible escape routes even as Shuri’s money disappeared off of the table. 

“Who else would I be talking to?” Brunhilde retorted before she could stop herself. This was Loki but, for whatever reason, he had no idea who she was. She couldn’t say how she was so certain this was the Trickster but it was something she didn’t question. He looked to be about twelve in Midgardian years, which would only leave him at around 600 Asgardian years. The boy’s hair fell in dark curls around his cheeks and the green eyes were watching her with a vaguely calculating look she’d often seen directed towards others on first Sakaar, then on the Statesman. 

“Well, my name isn’t Lackey and you were just talking to them.” the boy pointed out and Brunhilde noted how silent the news crews were. So he’d already ingratiated himself with them. It figured. Lackey sure didn’t take his time. 

“Valkyrie.” T’Challa greeted, inclining his head slightly. “May I inquire as to what is going on?” 

“Did you see his tricks?” Shuri added, grin widening. “He even fooled my brother.” 

“No, I would not say I was fooled. Merely caught off guard.” said brother instantly retorted and Brunhilde was reminded instantly of similar bickering which had become a staple on the long voyage towards Midgard. 

“It’s nothing. I thought…” She shook her head and noted the understanding looks on the faces of the Wakandans. They thought the boy had reminded her of one of the many lost to Thanos before the snap. Well, they were close enough. “Sorry. It was a good trick.” Digging through her armor and cursing the distinct lack of pockets, she was soon dropping as much money as she had on her onto the table. She couldn’t let one of the Prince’s of Asgard go hungry on the street. “Your Majesty, may we talk?” she asked as the others continued forward, joining them with only one backwards look over her shoulder. It was time to find a means of contacting Thor.

* * *

Watching the group leave, Serrure didn’t realize he was frozen until another group passed him, moving to block his view of the small group entering the building. Turning back to the table he was soon working on autopilot as he began speaking again, sliding the money he earned into his pocket without looking at it. Who had she been? He’d heard one of the others call her Valkyrie but that told him nothing; it didn’t even sound like a name. She wasn’t dressed like a diplomat, that was for sure. The more he thought about her, however, the more he felt drawn in. There was something more to her, something that if he could only remember what it was… He shied away from those thoughts. The closest he came to that feeling was during his dreams and the nightmares he got afterwards were bad enough despite being forgotten upon waking up. He needed to focus on what he was doing and if she had some connection to those dreams then he wanted nothing to do with her. 

Initially Serrure had been planning to stay for the entire day in order to see how much he could make when the emissaries left for the day but after the last people entered and the news crews allowed inside began to filter in Serrure instead moved to pack his things. Sliding the cards back into their worn box, he was soon returning them to his pocket. He’d already made more than he’d thought he would so to stay longer only meant possibly running into the woman again. She had probably simply mistaken him for someone she’d lost either in or before the snap. Many families which had moved away from their homes had yet to be reunited with the returned and still more had moved on entirely, no longer wanting their loved ones to return. Slipping off, he was soon starting the walk back to the district where he lived.

Once he was out of sight in one of the empty alleyways Serrure began redistributing his newly acquired wealth, slipping the euro notes into various pockets. He’d made about 428 euros, more than enough to pay for his rent over the next couple of months if he was careful and earned enough each day in order to pay for his food. Serrure made sure that thirty bills were left in the main pocket of the hoodie he was wearing. Enzo would ask, after all, and for Serrure to justify going on his own he would have needed to make about as much as they normally would together. The older boy would, of course, expect a cut in exchange for looking out for Serrure when the boy had first found himself on the streets. Giving him at least ten euro would let the other feel respected and give him something to brag to the others about. 

After making sure that everything was settled down on his person so nothing would be seen by a casual observer, Serrure continued on his way, stepping out of the alley. A few people nodded to him as they passed and he carefully smiled back in return, trying to act as natural as possible. As he’d anticipated, Enzo ran into him immediately outside of the rundown building they both called home. 

“Hey, Serrure, you done already? I thought you’d still be out, trying to bring in a full day’s take.” he called and it took all of Serrure’s self control not to ask why the other wasn’t out still himself in that case.

Yeah. I made a fair amount but after everyone disappeared inside I figured I wouldn’t push my luck by staying and waiting for them to come out, just in case someone called the cops. They might have tried to arrest me then.” he noted, smiling up at the other as he fished out the money. “Besides, I already made more than I usually would. Here.” he peeled off ten of the euros, careful to ensure that Enzo saw the full amount as he handed the bills to the older boy who took them with a grin.

“I knew you’d come through, Serrure.” he said, the bills disappearing into his pocket. “I’ll be by to pick you up tomorrow.” he added, starting off down the road. Nodding, Serrure, watched him leave before climbing through a nearby hole in the building’s wall. Making his way through the halls he was soon pushing aside the board that designated his ‘room’. 

It was really more of a section of the building’s interior that had been surrounded by hung sheets to give it a semblance of privacy. There was barely enough room to lie down inside but it was better than sleeping on the streets in door stoops and under trees, something he’d done until Enzo had shown him this place. It was nowhere to leave any possessions unless you wanted them to be stolen but it was a place to sleep. A tarp which had been hung overhead even kept out the worst of the weather. 

If it had been any other time the building would have likely been condemned but for the moment it was a place where people with nowhere else to go could live with minimal income. You got what you paid for, after all. He had worse problems to deal with right now, although he would probably need to start looking for somewhere else to live in the near future. It was only a matter of time before reconstruction efforts reached here and demolished his temporary home.

He froze upon entering the room, staring at the sight that greeted him. “Hello, Mr. Magpie.” Serrure said slowly, the words feeling strangely familiar as he stepped slightly further into the room, glancing up. Ah. A corner of the tarp had come loose and was flapping in the wind. Either a piece of debris or the bird’s weight had likely caused it to cave in. The magpie’s feathers ruffled slightly at his words but it didn’t move, continuing to watch him. “You aren’t supposed to be here, you know.” Serrure told it conversationally, slowly moving towards the bird as he tried to figure out the best way to scare it into flying back out of the hole so he could close the tarp before the weather could turn. The magpie suddenly looked up, eyes meeting Serrure’s with a gaze that was sharp and knowing in a way which sent shivers up the boy’s spine. “Shoo.” He tried to wave his arms at the bird but it simply sat there for a moment before hopping to the side, off of the pile of pilfered blankets that served as a bed. Moving to try again, Serrure froze at the sound of his landlady’s voice as it echoed through the hall outside, rough and scratchy.

“Is something wrong? You aren’t up to anything in there, are you?” Mme. Paquet called and he could hear her making her way in his direction. While the accommodations weren’t much, she took as much pride in them as if they had been a palace. If she found out about the bird’s presence it was possible he could be kicked out, regardless of whether or not he was at fault.

“No! Nothing. I was just talking to myself. Sorry for bothering you, Mme.” he called. She was silent for a few minutes before he heard her turn, footsteps starting off in the opposite direction and quickly fading. She’d believed him, at least. That was definitely not always a guarantee; people always seemed to think he was up to something. 

A breath of relief left him and as soon as he was certain she was out of immediate earshot Serrure shot the bird a glare. “Fine. Stay for now but you must be gone in the morning.” he hissed. The magpie gained an almost smug look, eyes gleaming as it twisted to run its beak through its feathers as it preened. The bird was driving him insane; he actually thought it looked smug! 

After making sure the ‘door’ was firmly closed, Serrure set up a small noise trap he’d learned from a man who had lived two rooms down. The other had disappeared soon after Serrure had moved in and while he hoped the man had returned to his family it was far more likely that something far worse had happened to him. It was better not to ask questions. 

Once he finished setting up the warning system Serrure let himself fall onto the pile of blankets, burying his head in his arms as relief washed over him. He was okay. There was enough money that he wouldn’t have to worry about living from day to day for a few months. He’d even made it back, safe and sound. Whoever the strange woman had been, there was no way for her to track him back here (or he sincerely hoped there wasn’t). 

Fatigue washed over him as he curled up, asleep almost before he’d fully settled. He didn’t notice the magpie watching him, hopping closer after a moment to get a closer look before tugging one of the blankets further over him. Taking off, it was soon flying up to land on a higher perch whereupon it settled down, turning its gaze towards the door as though keeping watch.


	3. In which Trouble is Found

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Another chapter! I hope everyone enjoys it. Since it is time for Camp Nanowrimo I'm hopefully going to finish the preliminary writing for this fic and then it'll just need editing before being posted. Best of luck to everyone affected by COVID and stay safe!

Brunhilde barely paid any attention to the meeting going on around her, thoughts racing. She’d asked Shuri if she could help invent some piece of technology which would be capable of contacting the Benatar, wherever it was. The young woman had quickly agreed, apparently eager for the challenge such a task presented. Brunhilde could understand the desire to push oneself to improve, even if she didn’t necessarily understand the other’s interest in technology as that arena. As long as whatever it was worked, that was good enough for her. 

That meant that getting in touch with Thor was taken care of. All that was left was figuring out what to do about the child, about Loki. However he had managed to return from beyond death itself it was obvious the other had retained none of his memories. Or at least none with Brunhilde in them. He certainly hadn’t recognized her. Of course he could have been pretending… Gritting her teeth in irritation, Brunhilde shook her head to clear it of those thoughts. No, she had to believe that Lackey wouldn’t simply pretend not to know who she was, not after everything they had been through together on the Statesman. Even if he was still scared of Thanos (after all, if he had found a way to return it was possible Thanos could as well) he would have let her know somehow that he knew who she was. There would have been some sign, surely. 

“Are you okay?” the diplomat next to her asked and she realized that, between her grinding teeth and clenched fists, she looked ready to kill someone. Forcing herself to relax, she shot him a forced smile. 

“Sorry. Just remembering something I forgot to do.” she told him softly, although it took everything she had to keep her voice steady and low. The other shot her a disbelieving look but slowly turned his attention back to the talks in front of them. Some ambassador was going on and on about how they all needed to band together for the greater good in the aftermath of the tragedy, blah blah blah. Yeah right. The countries which had been world powers before the snap would be trying to return to that position now, meaning they would likely try to get more favorable positions during this waste of time. Huh. Lackey had rubbed off on her. Brunhilde tuned everything back out, returning to her thoughts. 

Lackey had to live until Thor could get here to figure out both what was going on as well as what he wanted to do about it. He had to decide that for himself, as Lackey’s brother. There was no other member of the royal family left, after all. She wasn’t above admitting to herself that she also wanted him to be the one to figure everything out because it would mean that Thor would have to stay on Midgard for a time. She could force him to take his position as king of Asgard back and lead the people like he was supposed to. That led her back to the original problem, though. If Loki was going to survive, he looked like he’d need some help. He’d been playing card games for money, after all! The Loki she’d known would have never stooped that low. So, who did she know with the money to offer assistance? The Wakandans had already offered New Asgard so much assistance that it felt wrong to ask them for more. Perhaps Pepper Stark would be willing to help? With a young child of her own it was possible she might feel more for a young boy’s plight. It was worth a shot at any rate. 

For the remainder of the duration of the meeting Brunhilde found it difficult to sit still, bolting to her feet as soon as the last speaker stepped down and the meeting was adjourned for the day. Striding out ahead of various surprised diplomats, she was soon pulling out her phone and dialing a number which had been saved in her phone but never used until now. 

“Hello? This is Pepper. How can I help you?” Pepper’s voice sounded over the speakers. Brunhilde couldn’t help the faint grin at the realization that this must have been a private number for such an informal greeting. She hadn’t met the other save when she had attended Stark’s funeral with Thor but anyone who could put up with Stark was someone she thought she could get along with. 

“Hey Pepper, it’s Valkyrie. I need to ask you for a favor.” she said, pushing through the press as she made her way back towards the hotel. Lackey was gone but she really hadn’t expected him to stick around, not after her outburst. That just meant she’d need resources to find him with as well. 

“Valkyrie? How is everything going in New Asgard? I heard about Thor. Is there anything I can do to help? We’re running a little slow right now but I could try to streamline a special order if you need it.” Brunhilde felt a twinge of relief. So many people had tried to congratulate her, as if suddenly being named queen was some sort of promotion. Then again, Pepper would probably understand better than anyone else, considering. 

“New Asgard is good for the time being.” Brunhilde told her. “I’m calling for a personal favor, actually. You see…” 

* * *

The magpie was annoying, Serrure quickly decided. It followed him everywhere and was always watching him, more intelligence in its eyes than there should have been. Most of the time it made his skin crawl. He’d spent the last week looking over his shoulder only to see the bird’s gaze watching him instead of a cop’s, something which had made him jumpier than normal during his card tricks. Serrure had already messed up three times, something Enzo was looking less than thrilled about as the other hung out on the edge of the crowd. Turning his gaze back to his hands as he shuffled the cards, Serrure bit his lip. He couldn’t risk messing up again and losing any more money; he’d already lost everything he’d earned so far and messed up two grabs for Enzo. At this rate they wouldn’t be able to scrape even. 

“Step right up, ladies. Beautiful ladies. Miss with the orange shirt, you look lucky today. Would you care to play a game with me? It’s only ten cents to play and if you pick correctly I’ll double your wager.” he called, noting Enzo moving towards the indicated target as he shuffled the cards. The lady he’d singled out moved over to the table, already pulling out a ten cent coin from her wallet before sliding the later back into her purse. 

“Here.” she told him, placing the money on the side of the table as he shuffled the cards between his hands. He had to make sure she lost in a way which would make her not want to play again as he didn’t have enough money on hand to pay her back double, not without breaking into his secret stash and that would certainly draw Enzo’s attention. Besides which, if she wanted to play again she would definitely notice her missing wallet. 

Taking a deep breath to focus he was soon setting out the three cards, making sure she saw that all three were there before he began moving them around, a smile playing across his lips at the familiar feeling of excitement that always flowed through him when the trick was going well. “Keep your eyes on the Jack. He’s there, waiting for you to find him. And there! Where do you think he is?” he asked, the woman staring down at the cards and looking lost as her gaze fluttered from one to the other. 

“Um… That one? No, that one. I’m sure of it.” she managed, pointing to first the card on the left before changing to the center card. Serrure flipped the card over to reveal the queen of hearts. 

“Sorry. Maybe next time? You can always try again. Love is still out there if you’re looking for it.” he offered, pocketing the coin and grinning internally as she shook her head.

“No thanks. I wouldn’t be able to find it unless I kept guessing.” she told him, already continuing on her way. Picking up the cards, he began shuffling them in his hands even as he scanned the park, looking for another target. Before he could begin his patter again, though, a croaking sound from behind him and close to his ear distracted him. Concentration thrown off, he glanced over his shoulder to see the magpie perched on the bush behind him. 

“Go away!” he hissed at it, the bird simply croaking again before taking off, moving to circle over the head of one of the audience members. Turning back to what he’d been doing, Serrure suddenly froze as he caught sight of the man the bird was singling out. The man was watching him and speaking into a phone. An undercover cop. Blood suddenly running cold, he tried not to let on his discovery as he quickly continued speaking. “Who would like to play next with old Serrure? What about you, monsieur? Are you here for business or pleasure?” he called, smiling at the man as he continued to shuffle the cards. He saw Enzo mouth a curse out of the corner of his eye even as the other faded back into the crowd, picking up on the tip off. What he was doing wasn’t illegal; people knew that they were being conned, they paid for the experience and the chance to earn a small amount more than they’d had before but most didn’t mind the loss. Serrure never dealt with large quantities (at least not until the world gathering) so most of the cops were content to let him be. Unless they found the money he’d earned before hidden in various seams in his clothes they wouldn’t have any cause to arrest him. They would definitely assume it had been gotten illegally, after all.

This policeman was apparently not content with simply leaving Serrure alone, though. The magpie let out a piercing cry even as he started to move forward, heading for Serrure with a grim look on. Making a split second decision, he was soon palming the cards on the small table before darting into the crowd himself. The cards were important but not the table itself. He could get another one from a dumpster somewhere. Suddenly swooping down in front of him, the magpie abruptly veered to the side, taking him down a different path than the one he’d been intending to follow. Hesitating briefly, Serrure was soon following it. Weaving through a mixture of side streets and ruins, the magpie finally slowed before landing on a low wall. Doubling over as he gasped for air, Serrure took in the surroundings. How had they even gotten here? Still, if he couldn’t remember how there was little chance that any pursuit would find him. 

“You are a very clever bird.” he informed the magpie once he’d caught his breath, laughing both in relief as well as in response to the smug look it gave him in response, puffing out its chest. Maybe it wouldn’t be such a bad thing to keep the other around. “I suppose you can stay with me.” he added, straightening as he slowly moved closer. “Of course, you will need a name.” The bird tilted its head to the side, watching him with an expectant look. “What about… Ikol.” he decided on and the magpie abruptly narrowed its eyes, looking unimpressed. “What? It is a fine name. Certainly no one else is named that.” Serrure protested before realizing what he was doing and wincing. “And now I am arguing with a bird.” If there was ever a sign he needed to find more friends to interact with this was probably it. 

Ikol made a croaking sound that almost mimicked a laugh and Serrure stuck his tongue out at it. “Oh, be quiet, you. Come on, Enzo’s probably waiting for us.” he told it, starting off down the street, the magpie taking off to fly overhead. 

* * *

In the two weeks following the incident Ikol proved himself to be more helpful than Serrure could have imagined. The magpie was astute, pointing out good targets for Serrure to either get to play with him or for Enzo to pickpocket. Another four undercover cops were also found during that time, Ikol giving him enough warning to get away each time. They were currently scouting out a park with Enzo. With the increase in police activity it was becoming more and more important for them to plan escape routes prior to running their scam. The police were apparently getting their act together and many of the duo’s previous attempts had needed to be aborted, just as the first had. So far Serrure had yet to see any obvious undercover cops as they walked through the park, eating some of the soft pretzels being sold from a stand near the entrance. As he looked around, Serrure absentmindedly reached up to rub a finger over Ikol’s head before opening his hand to give the other part of the bread. The magpie’s new favorite perch was apparently his shoulder, something he found that he didn’t mind. He enjoyed the company the other provided and it was strangely comforting. 

“What’s up with the pigeon?” Enzo asked suddenly, glancing over. The bird on Serrure’s shoulder abruptly stiffened, hissing at the other boy. 

“He’s a magpie.” Serrure said, not liking Enzo’s tone. He sounded too interested. “At some point he took to following me around. He’s quite clever.” he added defensively. 

“It’s still a dirty bird.” Enzo said, although the dismissal in his tone had a hint of falsity to it. “What all can it do?” he asked and it was a little too smooth. Serrure knew the other had to have noticed the magpie alerting him to the undercover cops by now. He’d seen Enzo disappearing the last time even before he’d been able to warn him, not that the cops had been paying much attention to the other boy. Serrure wasn’t sure exactly how Ikol managed it; his current assumption was that the bird might somehow be able to pick up on the frequencies from hidden headsets but he’d never fully figured anything out. He’d finally just come to accept that the other was skilled and that he’d probably never find out what how he did it.

“He isn’t dirty.” he informed the other instead of answering directly. It was true, after all. Ikol kept himself cleaner than Serrure would have expected a bird to. He also took care in ensuring that Serrure washed himself as well, pestering him until he spent some of his money to wash his clothes at least once every couple of days. It wasn’t a bad thing, considering that it helped to look clean to get customers but it was still strange for the bird to care so much. 

Eye alighting on the bird in a way Serrure didn’t like, Enzo finally spoke back up. “A bird with skills like that could be pretty useful. Your usual cons don’t need a bird which can detect the police. I could use an eye like his. Or we could sell him to some big timers for a pretty penny.” he noted, reaching out for the bird.

Serrure drew back slightly. “No! Ikol is his own bird. I do not have any say in who he follows! I’m not going to chain him up for you,” he informed the other, trying to avoid the arm. Enzo was older, though, and with his longer arms it was hard to pull much further away without making it obvious to other passersby that something was wrong. The problem was abruptly solved when Ikol promptly reached out, biting one of the fingers reaching for him before he took off. 

Instantly deciding that sticking around was definitely not going to be within his best interests, Serrure took off. The look on Enzo’s face as he clutched the bleeding and distorted appendage to his chest remained burned into his mind. With his hand injured it would be more difficult for Enzo to pick pockets without getting caught, something which would make him furious. Due to Ikol’s connection to Serrure himself the other would likely blame him for the bird’s actions so lying low was probably the smart choice, at least until the other’s anger died down. That unfortunately meant he wouldn’t be able to go back home until such a time; Enzo knew where he lived and would start looking there. 

Ikol fluttered down to land on his shoulder and Serrure scowled over at him. “Look what you’ve done now.” he informed it crossly. “I would not have let him do anything to you so you did not need to do such a thing.” Ikol simply watched him, an almost worried look on its face and Serrure sighed. “I don’t know why I bother. You’ll just do whatever you want regardless of what I say.” The bird nodded its head in response, looking smug and Serrure wondered for the umpteenth time (he’d lost count a while back) whether Ikol really could understand what he was saying. Deciding yet again to think about the bird’s abnormal level of intelligence when he had the time, Serrure continued to make his way down the street as he looked for shelter for the night.


	4. The Art of Being Kidnapped

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone! Sorry about not updating last week; my beta reader couldn't read the chapter then. So I'll post the next chapter tomorrow. :D

It had been almost four days since the incident in the park and Enzo was still searching for him. Serrure had run into some of their mutual acquaintances the day before and learned that the other was still furious over what had happened. He’d promptly fled the group, figuring that if Enzo was offering any type of reward for locating him it was a good bet that someone might turn him in. If he was lucky, they’d give him a little time to run first. He’d been sleeping in various places around the town for the past few days, including under a dumpster. Last night he’d used some of his money to wash his sweatshirt, falling asleep in the warm building while he waited for it to dry. If this kept up for much longer he’d spend even more of the money he’d been hoping to save for rent. Playing three card monte was going to be next to impossible with people actively looking for him, especially since he was the only one he knew who did so which would make him stand out for sure.

At the moment he was sitting on the steps of the public library, Ikol circling overhead. While he was unable to borrow any books without a library card (which you needed a permanent address for) he could go in and read. The building was warm and they didn’t kick you out for not purchasing anything, always a bonus. Not to mention Enzo would never think to look for him here. The library opened in an hour but he had nowhere better to be. Leaning back, Serrure was soon watching the clouds pass by, Ikol lazily drifting in the breeze overhead. He was starting to drift off despite the cold when suddenly a shadow fell across his face, view blocked by the person standing over him. Heart leaping into his throat, Serrure scrambled to his feet before pausing as he realized the person who had woken him up was much larger than Enzo’s thin build.

“Oh. I’m sorry for startling you. I wasn’t paying attention,” he babbled, relief coursing through him. “I didn’t mean to be in the way,” he added, although there was plenty of room for the other to go around him. They were probably a patron of the library who had also arrived early or else the librarian himself. If they were the latter and he befriended them perhaps they would let him in early? His hopes were instantly dashed as the man spoke. 

“Serur? Circe? Seere?” the man asked and Serrure started to back up only to run into another suited man, this one with a much more muscular build than the first. His wrist was grabbed by the second man even as he twisted, trying to escape in a different direction. A brief tug told Serrure instantly that whatever force he could muster was not going to help him escape the man’s iron grip unless he backed it up with something else. Something he didn’t have. The man in front of him was already speaking again, hurriedly. “We aren’t here to hurt you. An interested party wants us to help you.” Serrure stared at the man even as Ikol landed nearby in a blur of feathers, the magpie crouching almost protectively on the nearby railing as it watched the proceedings. 

“Really? And who would that be? I assure you, I know no one with any sort of wealth who would desire to help me,” Serrure replied, voice low with suspicion. “Are you the police?” he asked, mind racing. Were they trying to offer him a deal of some sort? If they thought that because he and Enzo were not currently working together he would turn the other in they were dead wrong. Doing so would mean that every other displaced person in the city would turn on him in an instant and he would be shunned by everyone. Nowhere would be safe then. 

“No, although we did have them looking for you. You’re a very hard boy to find,” The man said with a shrug. “Like I said, we work for an interested party. One of the diplomats who visited Paris for the World Conference saw you playing cards for money and you caught her eye. She called in a favor and I was sent to come here and help you. The name’s Happy, by the way. Happy Hogan.” he added, holding out a hand. 

Serrure stared at the proffered appendage silently, making no move to grasp it. Internally his mind was racing. That could explain the increased police presence; he’d assumed they were trying to crack down on crime but now that he thought back to it he couldn’t actually remember them ever going after Enzo, just him. He’d thought it was because he was the obvious front man but… If the man was telling the truth then this was probably some sort of publicity stunt. A person looking to make themselves seem better by helping the poor child the entire world had seen on the news. It made sense. That didn’t make it true, though. 

“Help me how?” he finally asked warily. Ikol was sitting up slightly, the magpie’s eyes still watching Happy but no longer tense and ready to attack. 

“Well, you’re living on the streets, right? We have an apartment for you to stay in. We’ll hire someone local to make sure it stays stocked with food and supplies, whatever you need,” Happy said with a small shrug. 

“What would I need to do in exchange?” You couldn’t get something for nothing; they were likely expecting something from him in return. Probably for him to appear on the television again and tell people how wonderful his benefactor was and how indebted he was to them. Whoever they were. A lot of people had passed him that day and given him money; it could be any one of them. Or it could even be one of those who hadn’t given anything looking to make up for such a public gaffe. Well, any of the women, at least. Happy had let that much information slip. His gaze flickered to Ikol, the bird still warily looking between the two men. 

Happy raised an eyebrow at the question. “Well, you’d have to go to school, for a start.” he said finally. “Keep your grades up, not get into trouble, that sort of thing.” 

“And what else?” Serrure pressed. “Will I have to speak to anyone about this? I assume there is to be some sort of public event about this during which I will tell people about how horrible my life was before I was taken in? About how grateful I am to be cared for?” 

“Nope. Nothing like that,” Happy said. “No big press conferences, I promise.” A sad look flitted across his face at the words before being quickly replaced by a forced smile. “If you’ll just get in the car we’ll take you to where you’ll be staying,” he added, gesturing to a nearby vehicle, the windows blacked out.

Serrure stared at it. Oh, if he’d been wary before then it was nothing compared to how he was feeling now. “Um, right.” Ikol wouldn’t be able to help him if he got inside. Glancing over at the bird, he grimaced as he noticed that it was sitting up, preening itself. Why was it choosing now of all time to act like a normal bird? Mentally cursing it, Serrure focused back on the situation in front of him. The man gripping his arm had yet to let go, meaning he probably wasn’t going to be given much of a choice in the matter. Best to play along, then, until he could escape. “That sounds agreeable enough,” he said mildly, allowing the man to lead him to the car and crawling into the backseat. Sliding across to the other side, he was soon trying the door as surreptitiously as possible, biting his lip as he found it was locked. Trapped, then. The man who’d been holding his arm moved to the driver’s door as Happy followed Serrure into the car. 

“Don’t worry. You’ll like it. We tried to put everything we thought you might like in there,” he told Serrure, apparently either oblivious to or ignoring the boy’s unease. “TV, stereo, games, you name it. Of course, there’s also school books. Plus a computer. You can access more books from there, if you want to,” Happy said after a few moments, sounding awkward in the silence which had been hanging over them. Serrure said nothing, noting Ikol taking off even as the car pulled away from the curb, relief washing over him at that. At least Ikol wasn’t abandoning him.

Happy continued to describe the apartment. Although Serrure couldn’t deny the fact that it did sound like heaven compared to where he had been living, he kept his face blank. As his silence drew out Happy was soon switching to various other topics, obviously uneasy. Tuning him out, Serrure focused his attention on what was outside of the window, memorizing the various turns they were making as he only vaguely listened to the other telling him about a woman he was interested in and how she was related to someone named Peter. He couldn’t care less about that, provided he knew where he was so he could escape (or tell the police where he was if this was simply a very well thought out child-napping). 

Due to traffic in the city, the entire drive took nearly an hour. Serrure considered suggesting that they walk the rest of the way before discarding the thought. They would probably assume (rightly) that he was trying to escape. His stomach felt like it was tying itself in knots when they finally pulled up in front of a building. He could tell just from looking at it that the construction was relatively new as were most of the surrounding buildings. That meant it had been built since the return. Apparently they hadn’t been lying about having access to money, at least. It would cost a pretty penny to live here, in one of the reconstructed districts. 

“Here’s where you’ll be staying,” Happy said, stating the obvious as he opened the door, getting out. “Your apartment is this way. You’ll have your own key, of course. At the moment there aren’t going to be many neighbors, but I’m sure more people will move in soon. Your apartment is number 101 which is around the side, this way,” he continued, gesturing as he began walking, Serrure slowly following. “The community is gated so you shouldn’t have to worry about trouble, but just in case there is a security system set up.” Numbly following him around the corner, Serrure froze as he took in the courtyard. It had obviously been landscaped when the renovations had been occurring as the stones were free of cracks and the grass was neatly around the edges where it was supposed to be as opposed to growing through the paving stones. A tree covered in climbing wisteria provided shade for most of the courtyard, the sweet scent from the blossoms filling the air. He couldn’t help the slight gasp at the sight.

Happy grinned over at him. “Hey kid, this isn’t even the best part,” he said, moving forward and unlocking the door underneath one of the flowering tendrils, pushing it open. Moving slowly up next to him, Serrure froze again as he took in the polished wooden floors and the furniture. It wasn’t the fancy kind he’d half been expecting but rather practical furniture meant to be used. Noticing a light flashing next to the door, he watched Happy move in, typing in a code before turning to give Serrure a nod. 

“Here. You can input whatever code you want,” he told him. “Just in case you forget what you used or how to work it, the instructions are all in one of the kitchen drawers. I left all the manuals for everything in there, just in case.”

In case what? It was a little insulting but Serrure didn’t dwell on that, quickly typing in a code while the other had his back turned. 5654. He could easily remember that. “All of this is really mine?” he asked Happy as he turned back to his study of the room. 

“Well, yes. For as long as you want it to be, at any rate. The bedroom is in the back along with the bathroom,” Happy noted and after a slight hesitation Serrure moved to have a look. He was almost afraid to walk on the floor, concerned that his dirty shoes would leave marks on the spotless wood. It was worth it to see the bedroom, though. The bed itself was huge and would probably have fit him almost ten times over. It was covered in a deep green comforter which looked clean and unwrinkled. The room itself was also enormous; it rather had to be if anything besides the bed was going to fit inside. One one side was a bookshelf lined with books and a desk under the window which looked out into the courtyard. Once spring was fully in season the view was bound to be spectacular. The light from the sun shone in through the airy curtains and lit the room until it almost seemed to glow. Moving over to the closet, he opened it to find it full of clothing.

“We approximated your size. There are a few new pairs of shoes for you to try on as well. If none of these fit we can go shopping for more before I leave,” Happy called from down the hall, having apparently heard the closet door open. 

“You’re leaving?” Serrure asked in surprise, poking his head out of the room. He’d assumed the other was to act as his jailer and make sure he followed the terms of the arrangement. Was he truly going to be left to his own devices? 

“Yup. I need to get back to… Well, there’s May. We were in the middle of something,” Happy said and Serrure made a silent gagging motion. Yuck. Making his way back to the main part of the apartment, he stopped uncertainly in front of Happy. 

“You’ll have to take care of the place yourself. We figured you would want your privacy but we can always hire someone to help with the cleaning once a week if you need it. Same with the cooking. You’re free to order out and place it on a tab or cook for yourself, provided you don’t burn anything down,” Happy said before gesturing for Serrure to follow him towards the front door. “Here, before I leave I’ll show you where your school is. You start Monday, which is in two days,” he continued and Serrure nodded silently. School didn’t particularly interest him but he should probably go for a day or two at least. After that hopefully they would lose interest and he could do as he pleased. Those hopes were dashed when Happy added, “Attendance is monitored and since we had to put someone down as your temporary guardian we’ll be notified if you skip.” Scowling at his apparent transparency, Serrure reluctantly nodded. 

“Fine. I’ll attend,” he told the other. That didn’t mean he had to pay attention, although he was a little curious as to what exactly school entailed. They took the car, Happy explaining that he would be walking normally unless he decided he wanted a bike. He doubted he would; the school was only six blocks away. The roads were clean and if he hadn’t seen the worse sides of Paris he might never have been able to guess what had happened after the snap just by looking at it. Most of the efforts to rebuild and repair had likely already taken place here as the city slowly knit itself back together. 

The school itself was a large building with many windows looking out over the surroundings. Otherwise it wasn’t that impressive, save for being in the same good condition as the rest of the surrounding buildings. 

“When you arrive Monday you’ll be checking in with the principal first thing. He’ll give you your class schedule and a map or something to help you get to your classes,” Happy said.

“What classes will I be in? What if they’re boring?” Serrure asked challengingly, not about to just give up. 

“That’s the other reason you’ll be meeting with the principal,” Happy told him, grinning. “He’s going to administer placement exams to see what level you’re at. You’ll be placed into classes based on your scores.” 

“And if I fail them on purpose?” Serrure couldn’t help but press, Happy simply giving him a cool look in response. 

“Then you go to class with people a lot younger than you and you’re bored.” he replied dryly and Serrure promptly made up his mind not to fail. No way was he going to be stuck with children! There had been books stacked on the desk in his room (those words still didn’t sound real). If he looked them over during the next few days he could hopefully learn the material well enough to be with other students his age. A flicker of motion caught his eye and he noted the magpie alighting on the rooftop in front of them. Happy was already turning back to the car. “Alright, let’s get you back,” he declared, pulling out his phone and dialing. “Hey, Pepper? It’s Happy. About to drop the boy off then head back to the airport. I should be back in a few hours,” he said as he climbed in. So, was ‘Pepper’ the one paying for this? Serrure made a mental note to try to search for her name and compare it to the diplomats who’d been present.

The drive back to the apartment was made in silence, although a slightly less awkward one than before. They were pulling up outside the building when Happy suddenly started, moving to dig through his pockets.

“Hey, wait. I have one more thing for you,” he said, fishing around before pulling out another phone. “Here you go. My number is in there so just call or text me if you need anything,” he told Serrure as he handed the device over. 

Taking it quietly, Serrure turned it over in his hands as he studied the device with wide eyes before finally remembering himself and glancing up. “Thank you.” he told the other, Happy beaming back at him. 

“No problem. Again, if you need anything just call but don’t abuse it, okay? I swear I never should have given Peter my number considering how often he’s called me for nothing,” he grumbled and a small smile flickered across Serrure’s face. So there were others like him? That made him feel a little better, a little less like he’d been singled out for some reason. 

“I won’t bother you,” he promised, sliding out of the car, phone clutched tightly in one hand. 

“Take care of yourself, kid,” Happy called before the car was pulling away, window already being rolled up. 

Serrure watched him leave, waiting until the vehicle had rounded the corner (even though he doubted the other was looking back at him) before he peered up, lifting a hand after a moment for the magpie to land on. Despite the fact that he didn’t trust Happy further than he could throw him, it still left him feeling lonely now that the other was gone. “Well, let’s look at our new home. What do you say, Ikol?” he asked the magpie, turning back to the apartment and almost hesitantly trying the key. He half expected it to fail, for this all to be some sort of cosmic joke but the door swung open in front of him. 

The apartment was still as awe inspiring the second time viewing it and Serrure wasn’t sure if he’d ever get used to not being able to see the sky through holes in a tarp. The window was far enough from the bed that he could only see the stars outside over the tree and the nearby buildings if he perched on the desk to look out. 

Ikol seemed pleased with their new home, flying around as it took in the rooms, landing whenever he wanted to look into something more closely. Leaving him to it, Serrure moved to look for towels. For the first time since he’d run away he could actually get clean. Moving into the bathroom he’d soon turned on the shower, steam quickly obscuring the room.

~

Serrure spent the rest of the day accustoming himself to the apartment. After he’d showered and pulled on some clean clothes, he’d thrown his old ones in the trash once he’d removed everything of value from them. They held no sentimental value and were far more ragged than the ones he now had on. Ikol joined him in his search through the apartment, the child opening every one of the many cabinets to dig through them and see what was inside. The kitchen was well stocked, both with food and cooking supplies. Opening one of the packages of pop tarts (there seemed to be an abnormally large amount), Serrure was soon eating part of one as he went looking through the linen closet and then what was apparently his closet. Ikol ate the portion he’d set aside for the bird before joining him. 

“Can you believe it?” he asked the bird softly, eyes wide as he took everything in. “Who would give all of this to someone like me?” he wondered, the magpie letting out a croaking noise before landing on his shoulder and pressing its head against his cheek comfortingly. After a moment Serrure lifted a hand to pet its head in thanks. 

Why would someone give him all of this? If he took the two days before he was supposed to go to class to move everything out and sell it he would easily have enough money to disappear before whoever had set this place up would be able to notice. Of course, he would have to leave Paris since they had apparently told all of the police what he looked like already. The plan didn’t really appeal to him, though. He didn’t want to go back to living on the streets, something which would happen once he ran out of money. Besides which, this apartment had been put together for him. Someone had spent time thinking about what he might want and had made the effort to get it. The building was proof that someone thought he was important enough to spend their time and money on. Without any memory of what his parents had been like he’d never really had that experience. Well, if he wanted to stay he’d need to do well at the school to prove that he was grateful for everything just in case they decided to take it back. 

With that in mind Serrure was soon finding as many of the school books as possible, carrying them in rounds to the couch as Ikol helped him with locating the books higher on the bookshelf. Once he had a sizable collection Serrure opened the first one, starting to read.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm not going to lie, I was mostly thinking I'd post this and hope that the numbers of viewers would go up each week but I actually got some reviews! I don't know how often I'll do this, but I figured I'd address them here! 
> 
> Vasilis587- Thank you for taking a chance on this! I hope you continue to enjoy it. I'll make sure I finish it so that I won't let you down! Everything is planned out now, I just have to get around to writing it.
> 
> Madlenita- Thank you for reading! Hope it continues to meet your expectations!
> 
> toad_in_the_road- Glad you like where it's going. I can't tell you anything but keep reading. ;) I hope you continue to enjoy Ikol's antics!


	5. A Prankster's Guide to School

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As promised, the next chapter. Glad people are still enjoying this! I swear Thor will make an appearance at some point. :D Thank you to everyone who is reading and I hope I continue to make it interesting for you. 
> 
> Quick caveat: I am not French so my entire knowledge of the French school system is based on research online. If I messed anything up, I'm blaming it on the Blip making things weirder than they normally would be. :D So nice to have a built-in excuse for a lack of knowledge.

Studying hadn’t gone as well as he’d hoped it would. Serrure had tried initially skipping to the end of the books, figuring that might be a faster way of getting him into a class with others his age, but had quickly realized that he didn’t fully understand the material being mentioned. The books which had been on the desk seemed to be easier than the ones he’d pulled off of the shelves, but even they were built on knowledge he didn’t know.

He gained an appreciation for the computer he’d been given, using the internet to research the topics that others his age had apparently been taught at a much younger age. Math was easy once you understood addition and the other basics. After that it was just a matter of application. Science was also something which had caught his interest. He didn’t fully understand the more advanced topics, but whenever he read them he felt that there was something more, like he was looking at the surface of a lake only to find out it was much deeper than it looked. As he tried to read about the basics everything seemed to click together in his mind, pieces in a larger puzzle. Everything was connected somehow but he couldn’t see it yet. That feeling drove him to read more, staying up late on the computer as he followed differing paths depending on where his interest was piqued. To have this much information at his fingertips was exhilarating. 

Ikol was the one who reminded him about school. He’d gone to bed late the night before after trying to figure out how physics could apply to other topics such as medicine and healing and the bird’s sudden weight on top of him had caused him to simply roll over, pulling the covers over his head. The magpie made a louder chattering cry, strong beak grabbing the cover and pulling it back from the boy’s sleep-lax fingers. Finally sitting up, Serrure shot him a look.

“What do you want?” he demanded sleepily, the magpie hopping to the windowsill where it pointedly drew aside the blinds, sunlight almost blinding him, no longer muted by the curtains. Scowling he began making his way over to the bird. “Do you want me to let you out? You are smart enough to have done so yourself, of that I am most certain,” he informed the bird grumpily. Moving over to the window, he leaned on the desk as he reached for the latch before freezing as he saw a group of children about his age walking by, backpacks on. Oh. Oh shoot.

Scrambling to the closet, Serrure was soon throwing on some of his new clothes, glad he’d already gone through them to find what fit and what he liked. Pulling on a hoodie over everything, he couldn’t help but feel a thrill at how clean they all were. 

Gathering the books which had been on the desk he shoved them into a backpack he’d found during one of the breaks he’d taken to explore the apartment before Serrure raced out the door. Although he remembered how to get to the school, he’d soon slowed down to walk right behind one of the groups of students. There was safety in numbers, after all, and even if these streets were different from those he’d been living on that hardly meant they were guaranteed to be safe. He felt even safer when he noted the bird’s shadow following him down the street. Ikol wouldn’t let anything happen to him; for whatever reason, the bird seemed to have taken a liking to him and he trusted it to keep him safe. 

He broke off from the group once the school came into sight, angling towards what looked like the main entrance as the other students moved towards one of the side doors. Hesitating, Serrure was soon slowly entering the building, moving up to the front desk in the office next to the entryway. He cleared his throat.

“Excuse me. I was supposed to speak with the principal. I think I have an appointment.” Happy had made it sound like there was one, at least. Glancing up at him, the lady behind the desk nodded.

“He is expecting you. You can go right on in,” she told him and Serrure managed a smile, hiding any traces of nerves as he started in the direction she’d indicated. He wasn’t so sure he liked school already. Knocking on the door, he waited to hear an invitation before entering. 

The man behind the desk looked up, already starting to speak. “Welcome to our school. My name is Mr. Chaput and you must be Serrure.” If he thought anything of the fact that there was no surname he didn’t mention it. “What had been your experience with the school system before the Snap? Obviously many children were affected by the blip but you should still be at whatever level you left off at before everything. Let me know where you stand academically and we’ll see what placement tests you should take so we can assign you to classes you will be able to succeed at.” 

Serrure bit his lip, feeling heat flooding his face despite his attempts to prevent it. “I… I didn’t go to school before the blip.” he told the man finally, staring fixedly at a point on the floor.

“You’ve never attended school at all?” Came the obviously surprised response, a hint of annoyance creeping into the other’s voice. “In that case we would normally start you in L’École Primaire due to your lack of schooling, although Le Collège is where your peers are. I highly doubt you will make it to Le Lycée for a few years yet. When you do it will likely not be with those your own age. Still, after you turn sixteen it is no longer mandatory for you to come to school so should you decide to quit at that point we would not stop you,” he continued and Serrure glanced up. Noting the other’s expression he felt a spark of resentment. Just because he hadn’t had the schooling the other children had had didn’t mean he couldn’t catch on quickly. The other had been willing to accept him before, no matter how far he’d gotten in his studies. Why did this make everything different?

“I understand,” he said stiffly, the man nodding. 

“Good. I don’t want you to enter this school with unrealistic expectations. School is not going to be easy for you, nor will it be like anything you have ever experienced before.” With those words Serrure vowed that, no matter how much he struggled, he was at least going to make it look easy if only to spite the other. “Why your guardian chose to enroll you here I must admit I have no idea. A private tutor would have been better able to prepare you and cover any deficits in your learning. Our focus is on students with exceptional abilities in science and technology. Depending on your scores we can always look into having you transferred into a school which would better fit your strengths. I have an exam for you to take which will cover a wider range of subject levels. You’ll have three hours to take it but if you finish earlier you can come and get me. No phones are allowed but you will be given a calculator. The test will contain questions from each of the subjects you will need to be placed in, such as math, science, French, and history. Each of the questions will be at a level which other students your age should be so if you do poorly we can try to administer a second test with questions at a lower level.” He got to his feet, moving to a filing cabinet and pulling out a stack of papers before gesturing for Serrure to follow him as he started off. 

Nodding again, Serrure silently followed the man down the hall, placing his things on an indicated chair behind the main desk before continuing on to a small meeting room a little further down the corridor. The principal opened the door, gesturing for Serrure to go inside before setting the stack of papers in front of him. As soon as the other had given him two pencils and a calculator he was told he could start. 

Serrure instantly got to work. Some of the questions he came across he didn’t know the answers to but he was able to narrow down his options before guessing. Others, in the subjects he’d been more interested in, he could actually figure out by extrapolating from what he’d learned. There were other questions he didn’t know the answers to at all, although they didn’t make up a majority of the test much to his relief. 

He took the entire three hours, double checking the answers he was slightly uncertain about. For the history questions he’d simply given up, putting down whatever he could vaguely recall from the monuments he’d seen around town on the streets and otherwise guessing. History was boring; you could learn from the mistakes of the past, but memorizing details about it meant you were just living in the past. Change was good, something he didn’t think historians understood. French was iffy as well; he knew how he spoke the language and how he’d read it in books, but he had no idea what things like nouns were. Math was easier than the other two topics, but it was also one of the most time consuming as he had to work through the problems slowly, rechecking them repeatedly. If he’d done well in anything he was hoping it was science; he’d felt more confident on those questions, after all. Maybe the reason he felt that strange itch in his mind when he looked at it was because he’d been to a school like this before. If he had, none of the memories remained. How much knowledge had he lost from before the Snap? Thinking of that just made him feel sad.

His thoughts were interrupted by the principal’s return. Stepping into the doorway, he gave Serrure a knowing look. “Time’s up. If you don’t know the answers sitting here longer won’t help you learn them. It’s okay to not know them. We can always try again after lunch. I’ll see how you did and estimate which set of placement tests to administer next.” 

Not entirely trusting himself to speak, Serrure nodded. The other was already assuming he’d failed. Not that he was entirely confident he hadn’t for some of the subjects but he didn’t think all of them had gone poorly. Gritting his teeth, he followed the other back to the main office, sitting in the indicated chair. 

“You should go on ahead and eat lunch. I’m going to go run your answers through our reader so we can discuss what your results mean and come up with a plan to move forward,” he told Serrure. “Stay here and I’ll be right back. If you need to use the bathroom, ask Mme. Linville,” he added, gesturing at the secretary before disappearing. 

Briefly debating the merits of just walking out, Serrure quickly dismissed the idea. He wasn’t going to give the other the satisfaction of thinking he was right. Not to mention the fact that to do so would lose him his newly found shelter as well as the food and clean water. Digging through his backpack as he pretended to search for food he knew he’d forgotten to pack, Serrure brightened as he noted one of the pop tart packs. Not his favorite food ever but food. Ikol must have knocked it in. Feeling a surge of gratitude towards the magpie he was soon quickly finishing off the two pastries. 

He was licking his fingers off before an idea suddenly hit him. Asking Mme. Linville, he was soon hurrying down the hall towards the bathroom before ducking into the principal’s office. Pulling a coin out of his pocket (he wasn’t about to leave his money in the apartment while he was gone) he was soon slipping over to the chair behind the desk, loosening the screws holding the back of the chair up. Finishing, he hastily returned to his seat, barely making it before the sound of approaching footsteps gave him forewarning before the principal entered, frowning down at the papers in his hand. He gestured for Serrure to follow him and he was quickly on his feet, moving after the other and rapidly taking his seat across from the desk.

“Is everything okay?” Serrure asked innocently. The frown was hopefully a good sign for him. Either that or he’d failed so badly the other wasn’t even sure what to do.

“Yes. Your scores are… Perplexing.” The principal said slowly, sitting down. Holding his breath, Serrure relaxed slightly when instead of leaning back the other rested his elbows on the desk, leaning forward. “You were able to answer most of the more advanced science questions but you also failed some of the easier ones. Your basic math skills are good so it might simply be a matter of learning the correct actions to take than a problem with application. Compared to those two subjects, though, your history scores were abysmal and your language scores weren’t much better. That makes the question of where to put you difficult.”

“What does that mean?” Serrure asked, not quite sure what to make of the other’s words. “Did I do well?” he added, curious as to the answer. He tried to look over at the scores but the numbers didn’t mean anything to him without context. 

“Your science scores are a little varied but you’ve answered some questions above your level and failed some below so I believe that placing you in a class with others your age might work out, provided you work hard to keep up. The same is true with math. If you have really never been to school before you either pick information up fast or you are good at guessing.” He held up a hand, forestalling Serrure’s protests. “No, don’t argue. I’m going to give you the benefit of the doubt for those two classes and put you with others your age. If you were guessing you won’t be able to keep up and we’ll move you down. As for history and French, you will be placed three grades below your age. You’ll still have to work hard to catch up there.” he declared.

Opening his mouth to ask a question, Serrure froze as Principal Chaput leaned back, his seat abruptly collapsing to send him tumbling out of the chair. He was soon staring at the other, a mixture of shock and laughter warring. Quickly hiding his growing grin behind a mask of concern, he bit his lip to keep laughter from escaping before speaking up. “Are you alright?” he asked, belatedly getting to his feet and offering a hand to help the other up. 

The other was already clambering to his feet with a frown. “Something must have broken,” he said, looking the chair over. “Not to worry, I’ll order another one,” he reassured Serrure. Feeling a little guilty, the boy looked away. He couldn’t say anything without admitting that it had been his fault to begin with.

“How can I be in a class that’s behind me and one that’s with others my age?” He asked instead, trying to change the subject. 

“We’ll arrange your schedule so some of your classes are with others your age and the remainder are with the younger classes. You’ll have to travel a bit between some of your classes, but I’ll make sure your teachers know about your situation. We can reassess where you are at in a few weeks and then every couple of months. If you are struggling to keep up we can shift you down a few grades or if you learn quickly perhaps you will be in classes with others your age entirely.” 

“So if I learn fast I will be with others my age?” Serrure asked, wanting to be sure. The other nodded and he relaxed back. That was good. He could work hard and accomplish that. How hard could it possibly be? He’d had to memorize people’s names and faces as well as where they were to aid in his games of monte. This couldn’t be any harder (although it certainly had a lot less point to it). 

“Give me a few minutes to print off your schedule and then I’ll take you to your first classroom. I’ll give you a pass so your teachers for the day will know that you’re going to be a little late.” 

Nodding as though he knew what was going on, Serrure was soon leaning up against the secretary’s desk as he waited.

“First time back in school since the blip?” she asked him with a smile. “My grandson was the same way. Came back not knowing what had happened. It took a while before he got used to how everything had changed,” she added, shaking her head slightly and giving him an understanding look. “There are a few of the students here who were blipped as well. They made a club to help the returned through it.” 

“Only a few?” Why weren’t there more? “Is there only a small amount because this school has a special focus?” Serrure asked and she shook her head.

“No. After the snap schools had to consolidate. All three levels of schooling are currently being taught here. It also means we’re close to capacity. Other schools have opened temporarily due to the teachers who returned and they’re taking the students from their areas but don’t have many who didn’t blip. Many of those schools need to be repaired, though, so there’s going to be a lot of transitioning in the next few years,” she informed him and Serrure blinked. Interesting. 

“Is it very hard to get in here, then?” he asked with a bright smile and the woman, apparently unaware of the reason for his interest, nodded.

“Oh yes. Since our school was well maintained throughout the blip we have all of the nearby children in this district of all ages not to mention those belonging to influential people who were returned after the blip.” She eyed him here and he shifted, uncomfortable with her suspicions. Was he really one of those people? He didn’t feel like that at all. She abruptly waved over Serrure’s shoulder and he turned to see M. Chaput approaching, holding some papers in his hand.

“Thank you for talking with me. I learned a lot,” he told her, shooting her a smile. It was probably better to get allies where he could, after all. Which meant he probably shouldn’t have pulled that trick on the principal either, but as long as the other didn’t find out it was him hopefully it would all be okay. Still, he’d learned that whoever had gotten him here was definitely influential and likely had money to spare (if he couldn’t have already guessed that from the apartment). Perhaps the school records would list them? He needed to figure out a way to get access to them somehow. Making a mental note to try to do so, he turned towards the man now standing behind him. “Is that my class schedule, then?” he asked and the other nodded.

“Again, your schedule is going to be a little varied and we’ll change it some as needed. I don’t think I need to say that no one else in this school will have a schedule like yours so I would appreciate it if you tried to keep this to yourself as much as you can. We cannot accommodate everyone in such a manner.” In other words, he was apparently the only one. 

“Why would you do this for me, then?” he asked and M. Chaput paused before responding. 

“We were specifically asked to do so,” he replied with a finality that indicated he would not be willing to answer any further questions on the matter. 

Deciding against pressing any further, Serrure turned to perusing his schedule. He was placed in science and math classes that matched his age as well as a reading class that was apparently also with his yearmates while history, French, and English were all with the younger grade. They were split evenly around the lunch hour with math, science, and French in the morning and history, reading, and English in the afternoon. 

“For today, focus on learning where your classes are and becoming accustomed to the curriculum. Starting tomorrow you will be expected to turn in homework assignments which will be graded so you should come prepared to work.” 

“I will,” Serrure said firmly. He was going to prove that it wasn’t just luck which had gotten him here. He glanced over his shoulder as they left the office, gaze shifting to the filing cabinets behind Mme. Linville. The answers he was looking for had to be somewhere in there, surely. His eyes didn’t leave them until they rounded a corner and they were no longer in sight.

~

The afternoon passed in a blur of words and faces. Serrure didn’t focus too much on his fellow students, most of whom were laughing, joking, and overall paying little attention to the lessons they were being given. Instead he listened to the teachers, filing the information away and noting where they were in each of the books he had been given. Since the books in his apartment had apparently all been for people his age the principal had found him books for those classes in which he was further behind in. Even with only half the day of classes, his backpack was already much heavier than it had been when he’d first arrived. When the final bell rang he followed the crowds to the doors, feeling inexplicably exhausted.

As he started to walk back to his apartment Serrure couldn’t help but worry that if he was this tired after a partial day how much worse would a full day be? A few of the other students walking in the same direction were laughing and joking and they didn’t seem to be as tired so maybe it got better. He wondered if they also lived in the same apartment complex as he did. Judging by their clothes it would support his theory that it was a more expensive place to live. Watching them for a bit, he started when Ikol landed on his shoulder, the bird making a faint noise as it looked from him to the others and he made a face. 

“No thanks. They probably wouldn’t want to hang out with someone like me,” he told the bird softly, glad for its presence. If they came from money why would they want to spend time with someone like Serrure who had none?

Speaking of which… He was soon pulling out his phone, hesitating before typing in ‘rich Pepper’. Maybe not a great search phrase if he’d been looking for a more detailed search but someone who had the money and influence to send him here must have their name on the internet somewhere, right? The phrase was apparently enough to get him a result, though. Virginia ‘Pepper’ Stark. Who was she? Apparently not a politician which meant she couldn’t be the one ultimately behind this so she was either funneling money to keep their identity hidden or they didn’t have enough money to do this themselves. Could they be someone who was affected by the blip, then? He’d need to look up which world leaders had been affected to compare that to a list of those who had attended the meeting. 

Sliding his phone back into his pocket, Serrure held out a hand for Ikol to jump down onto. “I bet you would have liked it,” he told it, smiling at the almost doubtful look it shot him. “The lessons were interesting enough, although it was a little boring,” he continued, turning past the gate which surrounded the apartment complex and nodding to the man who was monitoring who went in and out. The man’s eyes widened as he saw the magpie but Serrure carefully kept walking and the man didn’t come after him. “I don’t think I understand why some of it is supposed to be so hard,” he added to the bird. English didn’t look any different from French and history was simply rote memorization. Reading was… well, reading. “Maybe they’ll get more interesting when I have more classes with people my age,” he wondered out loud; however, he didn’t think he could believe that. After all, the reading class had been with people his age and that hadn’t been very challenging.

Turning into the garden in front of his apartment he was soon walking towards the door, pulling out his key with his free hand. He paused halfway across the courtyard when he suddenly noted the second door a little further down. He hadn’t noticed it when Happy had been there, likely because he’d been too focused on the new apartment and all the other sudden changes in his life. After a few moments he found himself slowly moving over to the other door, Ikol clambering back onto his shoulder even as he peered in through the window. Empty. No furnishings or any sign of an inhabitant. Letting out a breath he hadn’t realized he’d been holding, Serrure returned to his apartment and started to unlock the door. Well, at least he wouldn’t have to explain anything to a nosy neighbor. Even though he knew it wasn’t the same, he was still not thrilled with the thought of someone living so nearby; his previous ‘apartment’ (if he could even call it that after seeing this place) had been one where neighbors could be helpful or deadly depending on the day. He was soon resolving to keep an eye on the other apartment, just in case someone did move in eventually. 

Opening the door, Serrure entered as Ikol took off to land on the back out the couch. Turning, he shut the door behind him before moving to drop his school supplies off next to the couch. Serrure dug through the kitchen, choosing some food which didn’t need to be cooked before curling up on the couch with Ikol and the textbooks. He was going to show M. Chaput that he was much smarter than the other thought.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, I will again respond to a few of the comments here. Thank you to everyone leaving kudos or bookmarking this fic; I can't address all of you individually but I wish I could!  
> Lorcats- I'm so glad! I hope you continue to enjoy reading. 
> 
> Random-traveler- Going to try to answer all of your questions here but some of them might have minor spoilers. Firstly, he will meet Thor at some point in the future. That is a given! As for how he was brought back (with powers or not), I will say that is something which will be addressed later on in the fic so I can't really say here. If you want a hint, I would recommend reading Journey into Mystery if you haven't already. That might at least show you who I am basing his character on. If you don't want any spoilers, though, keep reading and you'll find out answers to all of your questions (I hope). 
> 
> Madlenita- Thanks again for reviewing! I look forward to them by now! Thank you for continuing to read.


	6. What Good are Heroes Anyway?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this is a little late! I'm moving to start a job and a whole bunch of things keep going wrong. I'm pretty sure the apartment complex must think I'm an idiot by now. Still, it's finally almost over.  
> I hope everyone enjoys this chapter!

It had taken over a month to get everything set up for Loki and during that entire time Brunhilde had been terrified that something would happen to take the boy away from them before she could get him somewhere relatively safe. What good was calling Thor back to Midgard only for the brother he was coming to see to be dead already? Not that she’d actually been able to to get in contact with him yet. They had no clue where he or the Benatar were (or even if Thor was still onboard the vessel) and Shuri’s tech wasn’t able to reach all corners of the galaxy, although it reached a lot further than Brunhilde had anticipated. Still, she’d left messages with as many of Asgard’s one time allies as she could, informing them that she needed to speak to Thor should he arrive at their planet. Now it was a matter of waiting for a bite. Unfortunately, out of the ‘Revengers’, patience had really only been Bruce and Loki’s strong points. 

Since first seeing Loki back in Paris she’d busied herself caring for New Asgard during the day and spending her nights offering suggestions to Pepper for the apartment and the school. Loki had always liked things clean according to Thor, who’d briefly gone on a cleaning rampage after defeating Thanos as if in the hope that it would be enough to bring Loki back before he’d fallen into his more recent state. She knew Lackey liked reading since she’d seen him on the ship occasionally with a book he’d pulled out from wherever his Seidr spirited things away to. 

Most importantly, though, she knew Lackey did not do well with boredom. He’d always kept himself busy on the Statesman and there had been more than enough to do but Thor had plenty of stories about where boredom had led his brother and Brunhilde did not want to deal with that. So when it had come to school she had insisted that he needed to be placed in as advanced classes as possible and then watched closely for when he surpassed them. If he had even faint memories of Asgard his knowledge level could easily be above that of the average Midgardian. Even if he didn’t remember the information consciously, Bruce had noted that his subconscious memory might aid him and help him to catch onto concepts faster than average. So that meant that Midgardian ‘science’ might be easier for him to grasp than other subjects, considering how advanced Asgard had been in that regard. 

Brunhilde had briefly toyed with the idea of just bringing Lackey to New Asgard so she could keep a closer eye on him. She was concerned about the possible ramifications of such an action, though, especially if Loki’s memories were simply buried deep. That didn’t stop her from considering the notion again, though, before her thoughts were interrupted by the phone ringing in the other room. Scrambling to her feet, she was soon racing to answer it. Only one person called this late in the evening.

“Hello Pepper. How are things going?” she asked, trying to be somewhat polite. Another reason she hated being the leader of a nation of people. She really just wanted to ask what was going on, why Pepper had called her so soon after they’d finally located Loki. Had something gone wrong already?

Pepper, of course, couldn’t read her mind. “Hello Valkyrie. Things are going well. Morgan misses her father but…” Pepper trailed off and Brunhilde could hear the slight hitch in her voice before the other pulled herself back together. “We’re managing. It’s almost been six months since then but it still feels like yesterday.” Well, that Brunhilde could understand. The downfall of the Valkyrie had felt just as raw centuries later when Lackey had dug up the memory as it had when the slaughter had first happened. Hence the drink. A suggestion she doubted Pepper would appreciate very much. Before she could think of something suitably commiserating to say that wouldn’t just sound trite, Pepper continued. “I wanted to let you know that Happy went to Paris and found the boy. He calls himself Serrure, right?” 

“Right. ‘Lock’,” Brunhilde agreed. “He must remember something to have chosen a name like that. Plus he knew the AllSpeak. There has to be something left of him in there.” She was hoping there was. 

“Well, he’s moved into the apartment and I’ve heard from the school that he showed up today so it seems he’s settling in,” Pepper told her. “I’ll send Happy to check up on how things are going every once in a while.” she added and Brunhilde let out a breath, relieved. 

“Thanks. If something happens to him before Thor gets back…” She let the thought trail off. If Thor learned that his brother had returned and been lost to them again there might not be anything left to pick up. 

“I understand. If I found out that Tony had returned I’m sure I would do anything to keep him out of trouble,” Pepper said, voice wavering slightly in a way that was only noticeable due to the high-quality connection. “Are you sure you don’t want to meet him?” she asked after a moment, once she’d regained control of herself. 

“Nah. Lackey and I weren’t very close,” Brunhilde replied, leaning back as she nonchalantly lied. “It would be better for him to meet Thor first, anyway. He’s way more charismatic than me. I’d probably just chase the boy off and then where would we be?” That wasn’t a lie, at least. She did want to meet Lackey but Thor was the best choice to meet him first. They had the most memories together, not to mention the most happy memories specifically. If anyone could do this right it had to be Thor. 

“Speaking of Thor, have you been able to contact him at all yet?” Pepper asked delicately. 

Brunhilde sighed, making a face at the reminder of her earlier thoughts. “No. Apparently these ‘Guardians of the Galaxy’ he’s allied himself with are not always considered to be… Well, on the right side of the law. So I’ve had a few places who have promised not to arrest them or shoot them on sight, but there are others Asgard was not on good terms with who I haven’t even bothered asking,” She told Pepper, feeling frustration welling up. This was not what she’d wanted to do with her life, especially after re-swearing her vows to the throne of Asgard. 

“Well, that’s frustrating,” Pepper said and Brunhilde could almost hear her frowning. “I wouldn’t have pegged Thor as the type to run off with…”

“Space pirates.” Brunhilde filled in instantly. “Yeah, me either, but losing everything like he did hit the guy pretty hard.”

“How are you handling things? I know you’re the one in charge of running things now. Are you holding up well?” Pepper asked and Brunhilde grimaced. 

“It’s going. Everything’s staying together at any rate. Probably for the best that it was mostly civilians who survived. They’re settling down pretty quickly. If it had been mostly fighters I think they would have scattered to the four winds by now looking for adventure and glory.” She certainly wouldn’t have been able to keep them there. She felt like she was being run ragged enough as it was, barely able to keep up with each new problem that faced New Asgard. 

“It sounds as though you’re all doing a good job. I don’t know the day to day workings, of course, but I’ve been keeping track of your revenue and you’re really getting on your feet. You aren’t relying as heavily on outside sources of income anymore,” Pepper said optimistically. 

“It helps that we have a bit of technology that survived the trip as well as a few Asgardians who know how to recreate some of our equipment. It makes growing crops and harvesting them a little easier,” Brunhilde admitted. “Most are still coming to terms with the loss of everything we had. It’s hard to move forward during hardship when you remember it being easier and everything that made it that way. How much we’ve lost… Still, we’re getting there. I fear Midgard might not be our permanent residence, though. Not when we would outlive you by so many years. We’ll pick ourselves up here for a bit and then, once we are strong enough, we’ll go back to the stars and look for a New Asgard.” It was hard to forget their home and while Midgard was nice enough it just wasn’t like where they’d come from and living on a planet where they would outlive the other inhabitants by centuries was less than ideal.

“I can’t imagine. Living here, watching everyone you know grow old would be hard,” Pepper agreed. “If we can do anything to help… My husband’s technology might be able to help in some way.” 

“I’d hate to ask you for another favor after everything you’ve already done-” Brunhilde began before being instantly interrupted.

“Nonsense. Let me know what you need and I can get it to you by the end of the week,” Pepper said in a no nonsense tone of voice. 

Brunhilde laughed. “Well, I know better than to argue with you. Anyone who can put up with Tony Stark is a force to be reckoned with,” she joked, remembering her irritation at dealing with the man the few times she’d seen him during the blip. “I’ll get it to you tomorrow,” she promised, the two continuing on to talk about how things were going for a few more minutes before they ended the call. Brunhilde wrote a few notes to remind herself to send Pepper the specs for the few machines some of the Aesir could recall the designs for before going to bed, content for the first time in months.

* * *

While some of the teachers were okay, Serrure was convinced the others had no clue what they were talking about. English looked the exact same as French. He couldn’t see a difference between the two and yet the teacher insisted he was writing everything in French. Serrure couldn’t understand what the problem was. He’d read the entire textbook and none of it was in a different language. So it looked like his plans of moving up in his classes weren’t going to happen for that particular subject any time soon. 

History was different. The teacher talked almost endlessly about the same event, only changing which viewpoint they were speaking from. Honestly, if you just read the book it was easy enough to understand. Serrure figured that the teacher was simply trying to use different methods to help teach the material (he’d looked it up on the internet) but it was just so… slow. Besides which he didn’t understand all of the emphasis. You just needed to know enough to not repeat the past. The French Revolution? Don’t be in charge and keep everything for yourself. No need to keep harping on what years exactly it had occurred during or anything else. Serrure focused most of his attention during the class on reading, first the book for that class then others in a quickly broadening range of subjects.

His favorite subject by far was science. The endless possibilities, how you could always improve upon what you had to make things better for everyone… There was also that feeling he kept having the more he learned about it. Still, he didn’t fully understand that feeling himself so he tried not to focus on it too much. Math was probably his second favorite but once you learned the equations applying them was simple. In both subjects he’d begun to excel, a fact which made him feel a little more confident considering how abysmal he was at English. 

Reading was okay, he supposed. He hated to be told what to read and how fast to read it, though. He could read the entire book in the time it took the others to discuss the first chapter. How could you accurately draw conclusions about a book from only the first part? The entire book was what gave you a full picture. French was also neither a good nor bad class. He did well enough to pass and improve but the intricacies of the language didn’t interest him. Serrure preferred to listen to how the words sounded and use them to reach an end as opposed to putting them in the proper order and knowing which was a noun or a verb. He could speak and write properly by hearing how the words flowed, not by knowing how they fit together. 

At least the classes all balanced out. They weren’t all bad or all good. He was sitting in his history class, reading about chemistry, when the teacher turned on the television for the first time since he’d been in the class. 

“We’re going to watch some of the current news segments. I want you to draw parallels between modern day heroes and those from the past,” He declared. Serrure glanced up from his book as the TV began blaring. 

_“Disaster in Prague as a monster made of fire descended on the city during their SIGNAL festival of lights. The rampage was stopped by the heroes Mysterio and Night Monkey who, in a heroic effort, saved the lives of hundreds. Two students from America on a school trip were caught on a nearby Ferris wheel during the attack and were saved by Night Monkey. We’ll hear what they had to say right now.”_ The camera view shifted to the field where the attack had obviously taken place judging by the amount of damage. Flames were everywhere in the image and Serrure couldn’t help but stare, the images tickling something in his memory. A boy and girl were standing in front of the camera and based on the lighting it was obvious the clip had been filmed the night before. 

“ _Oh my gosh, it was so scary! I didn’t know what to do when that monster appeared, then the wheel operator ran off and we were stuck, like, 50 feet off the ground,_ ” The girl said, obviously giddy from relief. Her words were being subtitled underneath the screen, probably because of how excited she was. What she was saying ran together and blended in with the chaos going on behind her. 

“ _Who rescued you?_ ” Another voice asked, obviously the reporter since her voice wasn’t subtitled. 

“ _Night Monkey. Night Monkey saved us,_ ” The boy said hastily, looking almost nervously at the camera. “ _He kept the Ferris wheel from falling while Mysterio dealt with the monster._ ” The view abruptly returned to the newsroom. 

“ _As you heard, new heroes have emerged to combat these new threats. A week ago a monster made of water appeared in Venice and was also taken down by Mysterio, working alone at the time. With any luck, this is the last such incident we will see. Since the disbandment of the original Avengers, many are wondering who will step up to take their place._ ”

“ _What happened to the Avengers again? For those of you who returned after the blip their fate might be unknown as the fight to bring you back was what resulted in the disbandment. Captain America has disappeared, not being seen in the public eye since the funeral for Tony Stark. The Hulk, also known as Bruce Banner, has mostly disappeared from the public spotlight and speculation is that he’s planning on retirement. Thor, like the Captain, has also disappeared and it is not known where he travels now. Hawkeye has retired to an unknown location. Black Widow and, of course, Iron Man both perished during the war to restore everyone killed by the snap. The other members of the Avengers still live in the Avenger’s Facility in upstate New York save for Vision, who was also lost prior to the war’s start. Many, myself included, wonder if they can handle any new threats that arise._ ” 

The other reporter nodded in agreement, the two continuing to talk but Serrure tuned them out, returning to his book. Interesting but not really relevant to him. Prague was a fair distance away and if a monster did attack Paris it would likely be closer to the tourist districts. The Eiffel Tower was certainly a huge draw if one wanted to attack. So he’d just stay away from there. He’d been avoiding it anyway, considering all the people he did not want to run into while looking clean and well fed. He looked up one more time as a picture of the original Avengers, taken shortly after something termed the Invasion of New York, appeared on the screen. His gaze briefly lingered on the tall blond man wearing a bright red cape, an almost overwhelming feeling of familiarity rising up before his name was called. Focus broken, he turned towards the teacher, accepting the pass to go to the Principal’s office as he gathered his things. He had more important things to focus on than whether or not he’d ever seen one of the Avengers before. 

* * *

Serrure sat in front of Mme. Linville’s desk, fidgeting as he waited for the principal to call him in. His gaze drifted to the filing cabinets, noting the letters on the front and marking where the cabinet holding the ‘Se-So’ and ‘So-Sz’ files were. He’d need it later. Taking a deep breath, he glanced back at the door. It was time for him to check in with the principal after his first week of classes but he couldn’t be entirely certain that they hadn’t figured out who had filled the English teacher’s car with balloons. It had been difficult to get that many balloons ready, but he’d spent most of the early morning hiding behind the school and blowing them up so that when the teacher arrived and went inside he could pick the lock and stick them all inside. Ikol had kept watch from his perch on one of the light posts. He’d hung around after school just to see her reaction. It had served her right for saying his head was full of nothing but air. 

Mme. Linville’s phone rang and he jumped slightly at the sudden sound, watching as she listened before hanging up and turning to Serrure with a smile. 

“He’s ready for you,” She told him and he made sure to thank her and smile in return as he headed in. It was good to cultivate relationships with people who could help you, after all, and he was going to need her to trust him when he left. 

“Serrure, please have a seat,” Principal Chapin said once Serrure had opened the office door, gesturing to the seat in front of his desk where Serrure had sat during their previous meeting. As he sank into the uncomfortable chair he had to bite back a smile upon seeing the new chair the other was sitting in. “I’ve been looking over the reports from your teachers and I’ll admit, it seems like there is a mixed bag,” the principal continued. “Your science and math teachers say you learned the material fast and are fully caught up with the rest of the class. Depending on the next couple of weeks your science teacher even noted that she might recommend you to move into some higher level classes. We’ll give you another exam when we meet again which focuses on the subject to more accurately place you.

Serrure felt a thrill of delight at that. “So I can be in some of the more difficult classes if I know enough to get into them?” he asked and M. Chaput nodded. 

“Yes. I must stress, though, that this is highly unusual. Normally, in a case like this, you would only be able to test into the highest class offered by your school which would be one or two grades above where you are now. The only reason you have the option to test into higher level classes than those is because of the blip and the consolidation of our schools. Once everything returns to the normal system and our school clears out you would have to return to the highest level offered by whichever institution you attend.” Serrure frowned at that but nodded.

“Okay. Is it possible for me to test into the classes which the rest of the kids my age are in for everything else?” he asked. If he might be pulled into a lower class because of how behind he was at the others he wanted to at least make sure all of his classes were at least around the same grade. 

“We can try. Your French teacher says your work is good but you seem unmotivated. I also understand you don’t pay attention in your history class. The teacher says he catches you reading in class.”

“Because I read what he’s going over already. Listening to it again is just boring,” Serrure said instantly. “And language doesn’t interest me.” It wasn’t as interesting as other subjects, certainly.

“I can see that,” M. Chaput said dryly. “Your scores in English are abysmal.”

“Because the teacher can’t explain what it is I’m doing wrong.” Came the stubborn response. 

“She says you insist on writing your responses in French. That you can read what is written in English fluently but that you refuse to write in the language or speak it out loud.” 

“I’m trying! I just don’t see a difference between it and French and she hasn’t been able to help with that at all,” Serrure said, biting his lip. He really did try. There was just no difference in what he read or wrote and he didn’t know how to make one where there wasn’t any. How would this affect him moving up class-wise?

The principal shook his head. “Well, when we meet again we can discuss whether you have made any improvements in the subject when we test you on the others. For the time being we’ll keep you where you are. Does that sound acceptable to you?” he asked, standing. The conversation was evidently over, no matter what Serrure said.

“Yes,” he said quietly, although he dearly wanted to argue. He was bored in history and in reading, which the other hadn’t even mentioned! Sighing, he was soon heading out of the office, pausing by Mme. Linville’s desk. “Excuse me, but M. Chaput wanted to talk to you, I think,” he told her and she nodded, getting up and heading for the principal’s office. 

As soon as she was out of sight, Serrure dropped his backpack, jumping the desk as he ran over to the filing cabinets. Pulling out the drawer marked ‘Se-So’ he quickly flipped through the files, quickly noting that his name wasn’t there before moving on to the ‘So-Sz’ files. Nothing there for Stark, either. Unwilling to risk getting caught, he quickly slid back over the desk, picking up his backpack even as Mme. Linville returned, a faint frown on her face.

“He didn’t need me for anything,” She told Serrure who gave her his best guilty look. 

“Oh. I’m sorry. I must have been mistaken.” He apologized, shooting her a smile. 

“No problem. At least I had a chance to stand up for a little bit before my break,” She replied with a smile and he hesitated before leaning on the desk. 

“So, are all the student files really in those cabinets?” he asked, gesturing behind her as he tried to look as innocently curious as possible. “It doesn’t seem like they could all fit, does it?” 

“The files aren’t very big for most students,” Mme. Linville told him. “Most files typically just contain contact information for parents or guardians as well as pertinent medical information.”

“Really? Still, there are hundreds of students here…,” he said, trailing off doubtfully as he looked over at the filing cabinets.

“I know, but they do all fit, save for a few files for our more discrete students. I told you that we have some students from influential members of society going here. Those records are only accessible by M. Chaput so he keeps them in a separate, locked cabinet,” she told Serrure with a smile and he nodded.

“Of course. That makes sense.” Well, his record was either filed under a different name or it was possible it was with the restricted files. He needed more time to look through the records. Keeping his frown off of his face Serrure was soon heading out, the ringing bell indicating that it was time for his next class. He had a lot to think about.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to everyone who commented after the last chapter!  
> toad_in_the_road- I'm glad you like it! I hope everything keeps living up to your expectations!
> 
> Madlenita- Thank you so much for commenting every chapter! It really helps me keep posting! 
> 
> Vasillis587- To answer your first question, my goal is to update ~ once a week, probably on or around the weekend. My work schedule might have me doing overnights, though, so it could change a little bit. Especially when we get into the chapters I haven't mostly edited. As for how long this fic will be... No clue! Probably ~40 chapters; I've written 32 currently, although I will probably re-write most of them. The plot is all hashed out it's just a matter of getting there right now. I hope that answers your questions!


	7. Return of the Night Monkey

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone! Hope you all enjoy. I'm about to graduate so I'm not sure how updates will be for the next 2 weeks but I promise I will do my best to post a chapter each week!  
> Also: I've only seen Spiderman: Far From Home once, and it was on my phone on a plane. Which means I might mess up some aspects, so sorry in advance! Any differences will be due to changes in the world with Serrure's involvement and I'm sticking with that excuse. :D

The attacks on Prague and Venice were, apparently, not the end. Three days after his meeting with the principal he was doing his homework on the couch, listening to the news in the background. Serrure liked to know what was going on. Before coming to this apartment he had only known about what affected him personally. Now that he was learning the world was much bigger than just the streets of Paris he wanted to know more about what was happening in it, even if it didn’t necessarily affect him personally. 

He had just finished his science homework when yet another report of an attack came on the screen, this one occurring in London. Apparently someone had made a bunch of killer robots, equipped them with illusion tech (which he couldn’t help but scoff at; it seemed so silly), and then set them to attack people to try to convince everyone that Mysterio was a hero and not a villain. People were weird. The illusions weren’t even all that good. Ikol didn’t look impressed either, watching the screen for a few minutes before returning to preening himself. 

About to turn back to trying to figure out his English homework, Serrure’s attention was caught by the mention of the Avengers. He still felt that he had heard of them before the Blip even if he couldn’t remember where. Watching the clip showing on the screen he finally noted the small red and blue figure. A hero called Spiderman, apparently. Frowning, Serrure was soon pulling up a news clip from the previous attack in Prague, similar to the one they’d watched in history. Night Monkey had a different outfit but their attacks were similar if not the same. Interesting. Actually, if he kept looking into the news it looked like the same American school group was present in both locations. Before he could look further into the matter, though, his cell phone rang. 

Jumping in alarm at the unexpected and novel sound, Serrure stared at the ringing object before slowly picking it up. Noting the caller ID, he was soon answering. “Hello Happy,” he greeted, Ikol looking remarkably unaffected by the sound as the bird continued grooming itself calmly, shooting him an unimpressed look at his reaction to the sudden sound. Serrure stuck his tongue out at it, grinning as it simply gave him a smug look in response.

“I see you figured out how to use the phone. That’s good. Look, I’m coming to check up on you, alright? I’ll be there in a couple hours. Two, max,” Happy said and Serrure frowned. The other was American, so the trip from even the easternmost portion of the United States would normally take at least 7-8 hours. Which meant Happy was either in Europe or that Stark Industries had some tech they were keeping back from the rest of the world. Well, that was an interesting possibility. A faint smile crossed his face. Yet another puzzle related to his mysterious benefactor. 

“Okay. I’ll be in my apartment,” he replied nonchalantly, leaning back. 

“Good, good. Hey, look, I’m bringing someone else to meet you. He’s about your age,” Happy said and Serrure blinked in confusion. 

“That sounds fine.” Was Happy in London? No, that would be too coincidental, wouldn’t it? Yet Spiderman had been associated with Tony Stark in the past, hadn’t he? Maybe not entirely out of the question, then. 

“You’ll like him. A lot. You both have a lot in common, I think,” Happy said before hesitating slightly. “Oh, and there’s someone else who wants to meet you as well. Two someone elses, actually. They’re going to meet us there,” Happy added and Serrure could hear the nerves in his voice. He wasn’t happy about that fact for some reason.

“Is that everyone?” he asked dryly, trying to ignore the fact that Ikol was no longer preening, instead focusing on the conversation a lot more intently than before. There was an embarrassed sounding cough from the other end. 

“Yeah, that should be it. Sorry. Anyway, I’ll be pulling up your grades so we can go over them when I get there. It’s been almost a couple weeks since you started school so you should be settled in, right? We can discuss how things are going.” 

“Okay,” Serrure agreed, fidgeting. “Um, I have some cleaning to do before you get here. Especially if you’re bringing guests,” he said quickly, not particularly interested in having any other surprises thrown at him.

“Yeah, you do that. I’ll see you soon.” Before Happy hung up, Serrure could hear him talking to someone else in the background. Definitely weird. Was that the person Happy wanted him to meet? Looking at the clean apartment around him, Serrure was soon going back to reading to try to pass the time; it was difficult to focus on the material, despite his best efforts. 

He knew how easy it was to lose track of his surroundings when lost in his own thoughts. It still surprised him when Ikol suddenly landed on his shoulder, beak brushing through his hair before the bird took back off again. Jolting upright, Serrure noted the shadows moving around the front door seconds before the doorbell rang. 

“Thanks,” he told Ikol softly, appreciating the warning as he got to his feet, moving over to the entry. After peering through the peephole to make sure it really was Happy, Serrure was soon unlocking the door. 

“Hey. Sorry it’s been a while since you’ve heard from me. I got caught up in some trouble,” Happy said with a smile and Serrure met it with one of his own. 

“Trouble in London? Or Prague?” he asked innocently and Happy suddenly looked like he was about to have a heart attack. Or like he’d been caught in the middle of robbing a bank. 

“Wh-Why would you think that?” he gasped out and Ikol made the faint croaking sound Serrure had identified as the bird’s laugh. 

“I was just messing with you. They caught the person responsible, didn’t they?” Serrure asked, grin widening as he stepped aside to let in first Happy, then the boy behind him. The other was definitely not his age but at least looked like someone who was maybe only a few years older, probably sixteen or seventeen. 

“Right. Yes. They did,” Happy managed a little choppily, shaking his head as though trying to clear it before starting the introductions. “Anyway, this is Peter Parker. Peter, this is Serrure.” He looked between the two as though worried about their reactions. 

“Um, hey. Yeah, I’m Peter. It’s nice to meet you,” The other said, looking almost nervous as he held out his hand to shake. Serrure took it after a moment, slightly bemused at how uneasy the other seemed.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, too,” He told him politely, although he was already trying to figure out what the point of this was. The other was an American from both the look of things and the ease between himself and Happy. Unless the other was moving to Paris it was unlikely they would ever run into one another again. 

“So, uh, you liking it here? Paris is pretty amazing, you know. I mean, of course you know. I was actually hoping to bring this girl, MJ, here to give her something but it didn’t really work out and that’s not the point,” Peter said, rambling with a slightly panicked look on. “When did you get here?” he asked, apparently scrambling for a solid conversation topic.

Serrure stared over at him, bemused. “After the blip,” he said finally. It was hard to follow what the other was saying. What did he mean, when had Serrure gotten there? He’d always been here, he just didn’t remember it. Unless the other had meant how long Serrure had been in the apartment but if he’d been curious about that he should have been more specific. Or he could have asked Happy on the way there since the other had moved him in. 

“Oh. Yeah, I was affected by that too. Mr- I mean Doctor Strange had to make a-” Happy cut him off hastily. 

“Right. We get the picture,” he declared, Peter flushing. “Looks like you’ve been taking care of the place,” he added, looking around the apartment.

“I like it clean,” Serrure admitted after a moment. It was a reminder that he was no longer living on the streets. “Who is Doctor Strange? Is that his real name?” he asked and Peter lit up.

“I know, right? I asked him about that, too.” Looking a little more at ease he was soon looking around before pausing. “Is that a book on astrophysics?” he asked, pointing.

Serrure nodded. “It was one of the books provided. I tried to read it a little but I think understanding basic physics more might help.” He had plans to try again in another week or two.

Peter snorted. “I’ll say. Do you like the stars, then?” At that question Happy suddenly seemed to tense, something Serrure noted out of the corner of his eye. More surprising, though, was how Ikol also froze, eyes almost seeming to bore through Serrure’s back. He suddenly felt as though he was standing on a cliff, where the right words would see him safely to the other side while the wrong ones would push him over the edge. Shuddering at the sudden thought of falling through space, he managed a nod in response. 

“Yes. There’s so much that exists beyond Earth which we can’t see or explore. I’m sure there’s a lot of knowledge to be gained as well. I like that. Besides, we know there are others out there and just think of all the information they might have, ” he said, mouth dry. Happy relaxed as he spoke, looking relieved. What made Serrure truly feel more at ease, though, was that Ikol had returned to being its usual self, a glint of emotion Serrure couldn’t name in the bird’s eyes as it looked at him. 

“I go to a school for science and technology located in New York and a lot of the people who like studying physics or astronomy say that,” Peter mentioned, grinning over at Serrure. Relaxing slightly more, he smiled back. Peter was easy to get along with. Almost a little too easy. “I’m more into technology myself. You know, building robots and stuff.”

Well, that made him suspicious. “Is that how you built the suit you used in London?” Serrure asked slyly, wanting to see if his hunch was correct. Neither of the other two had a good poker face and both started in surprise. 

“Um, what? No, I mean, what suit?” Peter babbled. Serrure’s grin widened slightly at the other’s denial which all but answered his question for him.

“I know Happy had to be nearby to get here in such a short amount of time and a group of school children from America were near at least two of the attacks, both of which had heroes present. The boy who was on the news in Prague obviously made up the ‘Night Monkey’ to cover for someone, probably because if anyone realized Spiderman was present there they could figure out who you were based on your school group. I mean, an American superhero coincidentally in Europe in the same cities as an American school trip? That’s a little convenient,” Serrure said, leaning back on his heels as he enjoyed the looks on the other’s faces. 

“She said he was smart,” Happy muttered, softly enough that Serrure almost didn’t hear him. 

“Uh, what do we do?” Peter hissed. 

“Well, I think the more important question is what are you going to do?” Happy asked, addressing Serrure who hesitated before shrugging. 

“Nothing. I just wanted to see if I was right. It isn’t very interesting to do anything else.”

“This kind of information… You could use it to blackmail people with,” Happy said, shifting as he looked protectively over at Peter and Serrure shook his head.

“What would I want? I’m here, in this apartment, with books and a roof over my head. I have as much food as I want and there’s clean, running water. There’s nothing I could possibly want from you.” Technically untrue, of course. He wanted to know who was behind giving this to him but could he even trust any answer Happy would give him? The other might not know anymore than Serrure already did, besides which if he asked they would know he was looking into the matter. Best to play his cards close to his chest for now. Besides, it was a matter of pride by now to figure it out for himself. Ikol started laughing, almost as though reading his thoughts, and Serrure’s grin grew as he looked over at the bird, holding out a hand for the other to land on. He smiled over at the others as Ikol’s familiar weight settled onto his hand, Peter’s eyes growing huge.

“Wait, is that a magpie?” he asked before a sudden knock at the door interrupted him and all of them looked over at the source of the sound. After a moment, Happy moved to open it, revealing a man with an eyepatch and a strict looking woman. 

“Mr. Fury? Miss Hill?” Peter squeaked, looking at Happy. “Why are they here? How are they here? Weren’t they just in London, too?” 

“You think you’re the only one with connections? Don’t forget that I got you to Prague without anyone questioning the change in plans.” The man named Fury said, folding his arms as he looked around. “Not bad,” he noted before returning his gaze to Serrure. “Alright. What do you know about what’s going on?” he asked. 

“That he’s Spiderman and he’s probably here because he was connected to Tony Stark, whose widow is apparently paying for all of this,” Serrure said, nervous. Fury was intense in a way he’d never encountered before, the man looking at him as though he could see into his mind and read his thoughts. Ikol’s talons gripped his finger more tightly as the bird shifted weight warily, watching Fury with narrowed eyes before cocking its head slightly to the side. 

“Good. You are as smart as they said. My name is Nick Fury. I used to be the director of S.H.I.E.L.D. before we were disbanded. Since then I’ve been running my own information network. I brought you together because if you are both being sponsored by Stark Industries then it’s possible you might both end up working together some day.” 

Serrure stared at him for a few moments before bursting into laughter even as Peter spoke up. “Really? But he’s so young. I mean, I know I’m not really one to talk but I think that Mr. Stark regretted pulling me into everything as early as he did. I get that people with power have a duty to help others but couldn’t you leave him alone until he’s older? Or at least until… You know… He should have the option of growing up without all of... well, this,” he exclaimed, gesturing around before pausing as he looked over at Serrure. 

Finally managing to regain his composure enough to speak, Serrure shook his head. “Oh no. I’m not really the hero type. It’s all well and good if you want to put yourself in harm’s way but I’d really rather not.” The magpie shifted its position on his hand, looking suddenly (surprisingly) guilty as its gaze flashed back to him before Peter blinked and Serrure’s attention returned to him as he spoke.

“But what if you can save people’s lives?” he asked, looking a little incredulous. “If you have powers which can save them but you don’t do anything it would be on your shoulders. Isn’t saving those people worth it?”

“Nope. I don’t know them and most of them wouldn’t do anything for me. Why should I risk my life for them?” Serrure asked with a frown, head tilting. “I was on the streets for months after the blip. During that time I did what I had to to survive. Everyone who helped me did so because they wanted something from me in return. Even now, it doesn’t hurt Ms. Stark to keep me here in this apartment. She has more than enough money to do so without putting herself in any danger of running low.” Fury looked at him, a dark, calculating expression on his face.

“So you don’t care about the common good?” he asked brusquely. 

“That isn’t what I said. I said why should I put myself in danger for the gain of others? There are lots of other ways besides fighting to promote the greater good. Inventors make things like computers which are used by people to improve their lives and engineers design better building materials and now housing is more affordable. There are plenty of other ways to help the common good which don’t involve fighting people and nearly dying. If you wanted to convince me to become a superhero you might have wanted to wait until his injuries had healed up a little,” Serrure said, gesturing at Peter’s bruises. It wasn’t that he wanted people to get hurt, there was just nothing he could do to prevent it from happening. He didn’t have any powers and fighting held no appeal to him. Getting injured himself fighting someone he had no chance of defeating was just pointless.

“It really isn’t that bad,” the older boy protested, although he winced as he fingered one of his many bruises. “Look, I get not wanting to be hurt. Honestly, I don’t think we should be asking a kid your age anyway.”

“I’m not a child!” Serrure protested, however Peter was already turning towards the others.

“Look, Mr Fury, you can use me however you like. I owe it to Mr. Stark to keep the world he died for safe. But I’m not going to let you pull children into this, no matter who they are,” he said firmly and Serrure couldn’t help but roll his eyes. He wasn’t a baby. It wasn’t that he couldn’t help (he was sure he could find a way to do so, after all); it was just that he didn’t want to fight. Besides which, what did Peter mean by no matter who they were? Did he know something Serrure didn’t?

Fury stared at them silently for a few minutes before speaking up. “Very well. We’ll let you remain where you are,” he said, looking over at Serrure. “However, you will remain on our watchlist, understood?” The woman next to him nodded in agreement. Serrure had almost forgotten she was there, she’d been so quiet. He had the feeling she was like him, watching what was going on and analyzing it. Still, Fury didn’t seem all that intimidating anymore, not in the way Peter and Happy were both treating him like he was. It was strange. His thoughts were interrupted as Fury spoke again. “Alright, Parker, it’s time we talked. Follow me.” He was soon heading out the door, Peter gaining a look of extreme trepidation as he followed him out. 

“Thank you for your time,” Mme Hill said as she followed them, leaving Happy and Serrure to stand awkwardly in the room, staring at one another.

“So… Sorry about that,” Happy managed finally, shrugging awkwardly.

“It wasn’t a problem,” Serrure replied. He could probably have taken pity on the other and continued the conversation but watching Happy squirm as he watched him was more amusing.

“Looks like you’re fitting in well. How are your classes going?” Serrure decided to finally take pity on him as he responded. 

“They’re fine. Some are better than others,” he said with a shrug. “Science is my favorite.”

“I figured it might be,” Happy said, a relieved look crossing his face. “Tony, that is, Mr. Stark, liked science as well. He thought other subjects besides math were a waste of time. If you needed to know it you could look it up on a phone. Or write a translation program for other languages,” he reminisced with a faint smile. 

“Really? I suppose history is worth knowing, at least in a vague sense, so you avoid repeating the past.” Serrure said after a moment of thought. “I don’t understand language classes, though. For some reason I just can’t do well in English. They can’t find anything wrong with my work but they keep saying I’m speaking in French. I don’t hear or see any difference between the two languages. They’re both the same!” Happy blinked. 

“They are, huh?” he asked, hesitating slightly as a sudden glimmer of understanding flickered across his face. “I’ll talk to Pepper about it. Maybe we can discuss you taking another class instead.” 

Serrure lit up at the thought. “Really? Like maybe another science class?” he asked hopefully and Happy nodded. 

“I’ll see what I can do,” he said and Serrure smiled up at him. 

“Thank you.” he told the older man. He could spend his own time figuring out English for himself but he hated failing a class and having the teacher be unable to explain why to him. 

Before Happy could come up with something else to say, Peter returned. “Hey kid, how’d it go?” he asked, turning to face the other. Serrure shrank back slightly, smile disappearing as he watched the two talk. It was obvious that Happy cared deeply for Peter. He wasn’t jealous of the other’s affection for the older boy. He didn’t care what Happy thought about the two of them in comparison. He just wanted that. For someone to care about what happened to him, to be there when he got home and ask him about his day and to worry over him if something happened. Shaking his head, he tried to banish those thoughts. It wasn’t going to happen so why bother thinking about it? Better to focus on how what he had was better than his life before this than on what he didn’t need. Ikol eyed him before pressing up against his cheek in a comforting manner and Serrure reached up, gently rubbing its head. Well, maybe there was someone who cared. 

“Well, we’d better be heading out. I promised to get Peter home before noon tomorrow,” Happy said and Serrure started slightly, having tuned out their conversation. 

“Oh. Well, have a good trip,” he offered, pulling up a smile. 

“Right. Will do,” Happy replied and Peter was soon poking his head around the other.

“Hey, let me see your phone. I’ll give you my number and you can always message me if something happens and you need help or anything. Even if it’s just with homework. I was on our school’s decathlon team so I know a thing or two.” Serrure didn’t think he’d need that kind of help but he handed his phone over. Peter’s French was superb, after all, so maybe he might ask for help if English continued to elude him. “There. All in,” Peter said after taking a selfie of himself grinning. “And really, man, it was great getting to meet you.” 

“It was a pleasure meeting you as well,” Serrure told him. Peter started to leave before abruptly turning in the doorway even as Happy disappeared into the courtyard. 

“Oh, and if you haven’t already you should watch Star Wars. They’re old but good.” he said with a grin before hurrying after the older man. Serrure watched them leave, bemusement welling up before he closed the door and locked it. 

“That was… strange, wasn’t it?” he asked the magpie on his shoulder. As it croaked in response he slowly moved to return to his homework. It was a few hours before he could bring himself to concentrate on it, Ikol remaining perched comfortingly on his shoulder the entire time. 

* * *

The two agents drove silently through the streets for a few minutes before Hill spoke up. “You know, Nick Fury wouldn’t have revealed himself like that. He would have watched Loki from afar. Maybe sent a warning but not just confronted him with the others there.” 

“No!” The man who looked like Fury protested. “He would confront him and demand to know his intentions here on Earth. It’s Loki! The last time he was here he tried to take over the planet.”

“Right. Which you also didn’t do,” Hill pointed out. 

“Well, because we don’t know how much he knows! What if we reminded him of everything and that caused him to try to take over the world again? Fury would kill us!” The man exclaimed, although his companion didn’t look impressed. 

“We need to get him back,” She declared firmly, her companion nodding fervently. 

“Agreed.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to everyone who reviewed last time!  
> Madlenita: I figured that All Speak would be a good reason to have him understand everyone, but I imagine it would make for a lot of trouble when taking a language class since everyone hears it as their own language! :D Glad you appreciated that!
> 
> toad_in_the_road: Hope this sort of granted your wish (at least partially). Sorry no Thor yet but he is coming! 
> 
> Vasillis587: There will be more from Valkyrie's POV. She's such a complex character to write so I hope I do her justice! I know there's no battle in Paris but I hope this sort of makes up for that! I'm trying to stick to canon as much as possible, after all! I'm glad you enjoyed the balloon prank. My high school class's senior prank was filling our main office with balloons so I drew from that. As for following the JiM plot, I've tried to blend the plot from the comics and the movies as much as possible. To be honest, the sequel (which I've somewhat begun planning) might have a bit more of a nod to the comics. Without giving away too much, I think you'll find a lot of nods to JiM in the rest of the fic!
> 
> Gunhyld: I wish I could! Unfortunately, I doubt my writing is good enough to write a script for anything. Sure could use the money, though, and meeting the actors would be pretty amazing! I don't think Peter ever actually made it to Paris in FFH, but I took creative liberties here. :D I'm sure the chapter answered that question! Thank you so much for reading and I hope you continue to enjoy everything!


	8. Now You See It, Now You Don't

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! Sorry this took so long. I moved halfway across the country and graduated, then my new apartment didn't have internet. To make up for how late this is I'll post the next chapter tomorrow. :D Just as a heads up, I don't curse so I tend to self-censor my writing. Read whatever word you want into the sections!

Brunhilde stared at the figure on the screen in front of her. Weeks of effort had finally paid off. There, on the monitor in front of her, was the man she’d been combing the galaxy for. Thor looked… Good. Happy, even. Grinning at her, he spoke up.

“I heard you were trying to find me. Look, Valkyrie, I left Asgard to you. Whatever it is, I am sure you can handle things yourself. I would not have placed you in charge if I did not think you could manage it,” he said jovially. “I, for one, am perfectly content where I am so if this is an attempt to convince me to return it will not work. Isn’t that right, rabbit?” He called over his shoulder. 

“Uh huh, big guy. You wouldn’t believe how much this guy can do. I mean, even with the extra pounds he’s still stronger than Peter,” The raccoon said, Brunhilde barely managing to catch a glimpse of him in the background. “Plus he’s really helpful when people come after us for acquiring things.” Brunhilde grimaced. Oh yes, this was definitely not the sort of group Thor would have spent his time with before. Or maybe it was and she hadn’t known him as well as she’d thought from their time on the Statesman. Suddenly finding oneself in charge of a kingdom was bound to make one act a little more responsibly than normal.

“So see? I’m happy. You can handle whatever is going on yourself, can’t you?” Thor asked almost plaintively and Brunhilde almost found a yes crossing her lips. That was what she’d done for years of Thor’s self destructive behavior though, and she was sick of simply enabling him so that he could wallow in self pity and refuse to acknowledge the world around him. If he chose not to return, he was going to do so with full knowledge of what was going on. Of course, if he did that she had no idea what she would do with Lackey. He couldn’t stay in Paris forever, after all. Someone, most likely Loki himself, was bound to notice eventually that he didn’t age at the same rate as a Midgardian. When that happened who knew what he might do? Considering what he had done upon finding out he was a Frost Giant she wasn’t entirely sure she wanted to learn (although, to be fair, that had been a vastly different scenario). 

“Thor, you are going to sit there and listen to me. I had to pull a lot of favors to get this machine built so I could reach you and you are going to hear me out or so help me I’ll come and find you myself. You do not want me to have to do that,” She informed the god of thunder, hands clenching on the edges of the desk in front of her. The connection flickered and for a moment she thought Thor had hung up on her before the image stabilized again. 

“Dude, seriously? Don’t hit my ship!” A voice sounded in the background. 

“But did you not hear her? She was threatening this man. Surely we do not have to simply sit back and watch?” Another voice retorted.

Irritatedly interrupting the growing argument, Brunhilde spoke up. “Thor, I know why you don’t want to listen to me but this is important.”

Thor almost seemed to shrink at those words, sinking back as the happiness on his face faded to weariness. “I’m no longer the king of Asgard. For once in my life there are no one’s expectations deciding how I lead my life. This is my one chance to be free of it all,” he forced out, voice breaking. “After everything I’ve lost, this is the best I can hope for now.” She could see Rocket pushing the others out of the room in the background and felt a surge of gratitude. At least someone was looking out for Thor. 

“I know what has happened to you. What happened to Asgard; I was there, remember? We did what had to be done. All of us. However, right now I need to talk to you about Loki-” Brunhilde began before Thor looked up, a blaze of the familiar fire in his gaze.

“Do not speak to me of Loki,” He growled. “My brother died a hero and if any on Midgard wish to argue that I will…” he trailed off, apparently realizing the futility of threatening anyone on Earth from wherever his current location was, looking briefly lost before Rocket spoke up.

“Hey buddy, if someone is insulting your family you know we’d go there and beat the ever loving cr** out of them,” Rocket said and Thor lit back up again. 

“Aye. The rabbit speaks truth. We would come there and show them how much Loki redeemed himself at the end.” 

“Rabbit? Seriously, we’ve been travelling together for how long now and you still can’t remember what species I am? You’re even worse than Groot…” Rocket mumbled in the background and Brunhilde groaned. 

“Would you lot shut up? This is hard enough for me to explain without the interruptions,” she barked. She could hear Rocket mutter ‘ooh, someone’s touchy’ before the requested silence fell. “I need to talk to you about Loki because he is here, Thor. On Midgard.” 

The Asgardian sank back, face suddenly going slack. “That is not possible. He died. I saw him, I held him afterwards until his body was lost in-in the explosion. If he had lived Loki would have shown himself before now. He could not have held what I said against me for this long, surely. Not after I mourned him, after I got vengeance for his death…,” Thor trailed off into a mumble, the last few sentences obviously not meant to be audible. Brunhilde eyed his distant gaze, starting to wonder if this had really been such a good idea. It was too late to take it back now, though, so she was going to have to move forward and hope she didn’t break her king.

“Yes, Loki died on the Statesman. Now, though, he is here on Midgard. I know not how it happened, but Lackey was smart. If anyone could have found a way back from death it would be him.” She said, picking her words carefully. 

“You are not lying… My brother truly is returned to us?” Thor asked, wonder starting to color his tone as he leaned forward again, gaze sharpening in a way she hadn’t seen since fighting Hela. “Where is he? I will come there and see him at once and demand why he did not reveal himself sooner. Even if he was afraid of Thanos that is no excuse not to send some message that he had survived!” 

“He is back but not as he was, Thor. He is a child, no more than eleven Midgardian years, barely half a millennia for one of us. When we met he did not seem to recognize me. I know not whether his memories might return in time but even if they do it likely won’t happen on its own. Any spell to bring one back from the dead wouldn’t be easy to cast and they tend to affect the one brought back permanently. He may never remember what he once did or what he does remember could be… unpleasant,” Brunhilde cautioned. Any tale she’d ever heard involving bringing the dead back to life usually was not good in one way or another; look at Hela if you wanted a prime example of that! 

“So what you’re saying is he’ll either think Thor is some strange weirdo calling him brother or what, that he might start trying to kill him?” Rocket demanded, speaking up as he folded his arms. “Sounds suspicious to me.” 

“Not exactly. Trust me, Sakaar wasn’t an easy place to live. People did whatever they had to to survive and oftentimes it took them months if not years to get over the humiliation of what the Grandmaster would have them do. Lackey fit right in, though. Didn’t even blink an eye while maneuvering the Grandmaster.” Brunhilde said carefully. “Whatever he’d been through before he arrived was bad enough that Sakaar didn’t phase him. If he remembers Sakaar alone it could break him as he is now.” Certainly it would if he didn’t remember the strength he’d gained prior to that in his previous life. 

Thor looked up, having been staring silently into space. “I will come there to see him. If there is a chance my brother has returned I cannot ignore it.” 

“It’ll take a while to get back. We’ll have to get to a jump point a few systems over and we might need to take a few rests between jumps,” Rocket noted, folding his arms and Thor frowned.

“No need. Simply drop me off at Vanaheim and I will use Stormbreaker to travel by Bifrost,” He declared but Rocket was already shaking his head.

“No way, big guy. If you’re going to go meet someone who might be your brother back from the dead we’re going with you for support. ” 

“What? Says who?” A voice demanded from the doorway and Rocket turned with a scowl. 

“Oh come on, Quill! It’s not like we’ve gotten any leads on our search for Gamora and if we had all of us would come with you to find her. Thor’s one of us, now, and we should go back him up. I mean, what if you wind up needing to shoot the guy in the head because he’s a zombie?” Rocket declared.

“I can’t believe I am saying this but Rocket is right. As much as I desire to find my sister we should offer some support.” An unknown, robotic sounding female voice agreed. “Gamora will be found only when she wants to be.” 

“I agree. He was so sad after his brother’s death. Just like you were, Quill, after Gamora died. If we can make him happy then isn’t that a good thing?” A soft voice sounded.

“Besides, you’re outvoted,” Rocket said with a laugh and Quill groaned.

“Alright, alright, fine. We’re all going. I’m the captain here, remember? That means I decide where we go so we’re going because I want to.” 

“Right, Peter. You are the captain, as you say,” Thor said, a wide smile stretching his face as he turned back towards Brunhilde. “Is there anything else?” He asked and she relaxed at seeing him so animated. It had been six long years since she’d last seen him like this, a time span which was far too long even if it was a mere blink to those with their lifespans.

“Nothing that can’t wait until you arrive. Meet me at New Asgard and I’ll catch you up on what’s going on before taking you to Lackey,” she told him. 

“He isn’t with you?” Thor asked with a frown and she shook her head.

“I’ll explain it when you get here,” Brunhilde repeated. “See you soon.” Hanging up before Thor could ask anything further, she sagged against the machine. Finally. Please don’t let anything happen to Lackey before Thor got here or he would definitely never recover. Maybe she should call Pepper again, just to make sure everything was going well. Making up her mind, she was soon picking up the phone.

* * *

Serrure found himself in the Principal’s office again that Monday. This time he was more confident that he wasn’t in trouble; he was due to take the tests to move up, after all, and perhaps Happy had followed through and gotten him out of English. 

M. Chapin already had a stack of papers on his desk when Serrure was shown in. “I’ve gotten some more placement exams ready for you. You’ll take them in the same room you were in before. When you’re done we can discuss necessary changes to your schedule,” he told Serrure and the boy nodded, taking the papers as he walked down the hall to the room he’d been shown into on his first day of school. 

Unlike before he sped through the tests, knowing or able to guess at most of the information being asked. Finishing up before the third period bell could ring, he was soon bringing his papers back to the principal’s office, scanning the room for any signs of where the other might keep any folders with the information Serrure wanted. 

The principal took the papers from him, gesturing for Serrure to sit as he went to run them through the scanner. As soon as he was gone Serrure was back on his feet, moving through the room as he searched. It wasn’t too hard; there was a locked filing cabinet behind the principal’s desk which had to have the files. Unfortunately, he was unlikely to get enough time to himself in the room to pick the lock, let alone find the folder he was looking for and read it. M. Chapin wouldn’t take that long and he hadn’t brought anything to pick the lock with, considering that he hadn’t been sure when he’d next be in here. Hearing M. Chapin greeting Mme. Linville as he returned, Serrure was soon hurriedly sitting back down seconds before the other entered. 

“Well, you did very well on these tests. Your science teacher was right about your understanding of the subject; we can try to see how you do in chemistry based on the test scores.” M. Chapin said as he sat down and Serrure didn’t bother trying to hide his happiness at the news. He was starting to get bored in his current class. What had initially been challenging was becoming more mundane as he picked up on the material faster than the other students. 

“So will I start today?” he asked and the principal shook his head. 

“No. You’ll get a new schedule which you’ll start tomorrow, after I’ve had time to discuss these changes with your teachers. Your math scores also mean you can take a more difficult class if you wish and your French class will be with others your age.” There was a surge of pride at that; he’d worked hard to achieve these results, after all. 

“And English?” he asked. It hadn’t been on the test he’d been given but, to be fair, it hadn’t been on the first one either so he shouldn’t read too much into that. 

M. Chapin sighed, a frown crossing his face. “Your guardian has declared that they do not wish you to be in the class so you will be transferred into an elective class of your choice. If you wish, it can be second science class, one of our upper level technology classes, or a private study curriculum in which you would pursue a personal project on your own and then present your work at the end of the year. To ensure that students do not goof off you would also periodically go over what you are doing and how much progress you’ve made since your last meeting. It is a class unique to our school due to the fact that we were a specialty school before the Snap. Most of our gifted students, especially in the higher levels, thrive when given the space to let their creativity guide them. This gives them a chance to apply what they are learning in a controlled environment. It does, needless to say, require a certain amount of self control.” 

Serrure realized he was holding his breath during the description when it left in a rush as he spoke up. “Can I please do that one?” He asked, excitement welling up. “I’ll work hard, I promise.” He didn’t want any more of the structured classes and the idea of being able to focus the time on what he was interested in was like a moth to a flame. He couldn’t say no to such an opportunity. The principal eyed him before nodding. 

“I’ll get together the paperwork to switch your classes. Stop by the office on your way out to pick up your new schedule. Remember, you’ll need to check in weekly with the teacher in charge of the class. They’ll check the quality of your work and make sure you are utilizing your time wisely. We’ve had the occasional student in the past who took advantage of this system to play games and goof off. Since then we’ve initiated the tracking system to keep an eye on our students,” he told Serrure who nodded.

“I won’t do anything like that,” he promised. “We can look into anything, though?” he asked, wanting to be sure. 

“Provided you are making progress of some sort, yes. You can either consolidate information on a broad topic and teach it to the others during your presentation or you can come up with a research project of your own. Ideally scientific or technological progress but we will accept work in other subjects provided there is merit to it,” M. Chapin said and Serrure nodded to show he understood. 

“What if I don’t know what I want to do in the first week?” he asked, a little concerned. There were so many possibilities which could be included under the subjects the other had listed, let alone in the subjects he hadn’t specifically mentioned that narrowing down a particular field of interest could take a while.

“It is okay to take some time to come up with what exactly you want to do. When you meet with your teacher you would just show her the research you’ve been doing and she might be able to help you narrow down your interests even further. Some take a couple months for this, others know within a week. Provided that you leave yourself enough time to finish before the end of the year, you may take as long as you like,” The principal answered and Serrure relaxed. After waiting for a moment to see if there were any further questions, the man was soon dismissing him and Serrure stood to head to his next class, certain he would not be able to focus on it at all.

* * *

The week passed more quickly than any other since Serrure had begun attending school. He was now even more of an outcast in his classes; whereas before the younger students had been too self-absorbed to pay him much mind and the students his age were condescending due to his perceived lack of knowledge, now they were jealous of his rapid advancement (and the fact that he alone had received such an opportunity) while the older students in his new classes were dismissive of him for his relative youth. While he did acutely feel the lack of any friends in his classes, Serrure threw most of his attention into what he was learning as a result. He’d also kept in touch with Peter. The other was smart and offered good advice, especially with regards to his private studies class. Serrure still had no idea what he wanted to focus on and as a result had been messaging with the older boy about possible ideas, phone hidden under the computer table as he searched the internet.

_ Well, let’s start from the beginning. What subjects RU interested in? UR in advanced math and science classes, right?  _ Peter sent and Serrure made a face. 

_ Yes, but I’ve looked into what you can do with math and it’s mostly proofs. Math has too many rules. _ Serrure texted back, making a face. What made it so easy also made it incredibly boring. What was the fun in something which was so constraining?  _ I guess if I had to choose a subject it would be science or technology but both of those have too many different topics to choose from. _ He added. He’d been looking up the different branches of science for hours now and so far none had caught his interest. Sitting up slightly, he snuck a glance at where the teacher was sitting behind her desk near the door. In between them were arrayed the other students in the class, all older than Serrure by more than a few years; some were about to graduate while others were only a year or two away. While a few were also on one of the banks of computers, typing away, most of them were either performing various experiments or building different electronics at the lab benches surrounding the room. Sinking back down, he clicked on another link. Chemistry could be fun but he was already in the class and while mixing chemicals to see what happened would be interesting he doubted it would be approved. 

_ Well, there R lots of things U could do. I mean, there’s pure science, which would include theoretical and experimental paths, and biological sciences, which would be biology, medical tech, and psychology.  _

Serrure was soon typing the last one into a search engine, unable to suppress the small snigger of laughter at the results which appeared, namely the bait-and-switch acts. It was basically street cons but with an air of respectability (and without a loss of money on either side). It looked like it could be fun but he had a feeling the teacher would be able to tell in minutes that he wasn’t doing it for any true scientific purpose.  _ I don’t know… _ he sent back, sinking into the chair a little more. Would they kick him out of the class if he didn’t have anything to show for a week of work or would they give him another week before doing so? 

_ 1 sec. Let me ask someone I know.  _ Came the responding text and he leaned his head back, staring up at the ceiling. It was a few minutes before the other responded, enough time that he’d been worried that something had come up on Peter’s end. When his phone buzzed he all but bolted upright, peering down at it.  _ Try illusion tech. Mr. H. said it might be right up your alley. _ Who was Mr. H? Whoever he was, it wasn’t entirely a bad suggestion, although Serrure had no idea how he would make any sort of progress in the field. After all, Stark Industries all but held a monopoly on that sort of thing. 

He almost jumped out of his chair, shoving the phone hastily back into his pocket when the teacher, Mme Firmin, sat down next to him. “How is everything going?” she asked and he shot her a nervous smile. 

“Good. I think,” He allowed and she cocked an eyebrow. 

“I normally discourage the use of phones in school but in the case of this class it is permitted provided that your work is up to par,” She told him and he shot her a guilty grin. 

“Sorry. I was asking a friend for advice. I know what I want to do,” He offered and she sat back, motioning for him to continue as he paused, suddenly nervous again. What if she said it wasn’t good enough for a week’s worth of work? If the teacher didn’t like it would she kick him out or make him come up with something else? 

He’d been silent for too long, apparently. “What does it entail?” She prompted him and he eyed her before relaxing slightly. She seemed willing to hear him out, at least. 

“Well, I was thinking about looking into illusion technology,” He said, brain finally deciding to cooperate and shoot out ideas now that he was actually talking. “Most of the technology that is currently available is either too big or of poor quality. The best illusion tech either requires a stationary field, like what Stark Industries has patented, or it needs lots of moving parts, like what happened with Mysterio. Anything smaller than those causes the illusion quality to suffer, meaning that it doesn’t do what it is supposed to do. I want to look into ways of making highly-detailed illusions that don’t require a whole cloud of robots. Something non-harmful,” he added hastily, just in case she got the wrong idea. 

“So you would be trying to improve upon existing technology?” She asked thoughtfully. “Do you have any ideas as to how you might go about doing so?” 

He did, Serrure abruptly realized. “Psychology.” At her slightly confused look he hastened to clarify. “People see what they want to see, right? That’s why card tricks work on people. They want to be fooled or their attention is elsewhere. Have you ever played Three Card Monte?” Serrure asked, warming to his subject as the other shook her head. “Wait a sec.” Grabbing a piece of paper, he’d soon folded it before cutting out three evenly sized pieces, drawing a smiley face on two and a winking face on the other. Sitting back down in front of her, he placed the cards down upright. “The point of the game is to find the Jack, or in this case the winking face.”

“Alright,” Mme. Firmin said, obviously bemused. “How does this apply to illusion tech, though? Slight of hand is not the same thing.” 

“No, but it’s the principle behind it. You’ll see,” Serrure said a little desperately and she finally nodded. 

“I’ll give you a chance to show me what you’re getting at. If I think it could work we can refine it a little further,” She said and Serrure took a deep, calming breath before grinning at her. 

“Okay. Watch the winking face. I’m going to flip the cards over and you’ll have to guess which one. We’ll start easy,” he said, simply moving the cards slowly. After a few moments he stopped, looking up expectantly. 

Mme Firmin didn’t hesitate, pointing to the card on the far right. “There,” she said confidently and he flipped the card to show her the wink emoji. 

“Right. Easy, wasn’t it? Now we’ll get more difficult.” He began shuffling again, hands getting warmer as the paper almost seemed to fly between them. Used to doing this trick, he focused his attention on his teacher, watching as her eyes flickered from card to card, obviously lost. “Okay. Which one now?” he asked.

“I… That one?” she asked hesitantly and he flipped the card to reveal the smiley fact. She sat back. “I will admit, that was faster than I could keep up with, but what has this to do with illusion tech?” she said, leaning back and Serrure flipped the card back over. 

“Watch again.” he told her, this time focusing his gaze on the cards. Please let this work. If it didn’t, she wouldn’t let him proceed, would she? Focusing, he moved the pieces of paper slowly again, a similar speed as he had the first time. He couldn’t look up at her this time, focusing too much on making the trick work. Palming at the right time before releasing the card and… there. “Now which one?” He asked her and just like the first time the result was instantaneous and filled with confidence. 

“The middle card. Was I supposed to see something different?” she asked before falling silent as Serrure flipped the card to reveal a smiley face. 

Grinning up at her, Serrure leaned back. “See? Illusions work by using what people want to see and getting their brain to fill in the rest of the details. You thought you knew where the card was so you saw it go there,” He told her, feeling almost giddy. It had worked! “Illusion tech works the same way, or the successful ones do. With the robots and the stationary tech, there is enough of an image to convince your mind that what it sees is the truth because it can fill in the small details. The reason smaller tech doesn’t work is because it can’t fill in enough to make you do the rest. But what if it could?” 

“I know my eyes never left the card…” Mme. Firmin said slowly and for a moment he thought she would say no before she spoke up again. “Alright. You can work on this project. Your goal sounds like it would be to create a smaller illusion tech than already exists, or to at least detail how it could work if you cannot build it yourself. Does that sound right to you?” she asked and Serrure nodded.

“Oh yes. Thank you very much.” He’d just have to figure out how technology could work to form a larger version of the card trick. Easy. Provided he could find out what exactly it was which made the card trick work. Which meant he’d need to look into psychology as well. At least it would keep him busy and definitely promised not to be boring. He could see why this class allowed students to work at their own pace; there was so much to do he certainly wouldn’t have time to turn things in on a set schedule along with keeping up with his other classes.

“Then I’ll sign off on it. We can meet at the end of each week to discuss how things are going,” Mme Firman said even as the bell rang, signalling that it was time for Serrure to go to Algebra. He was soon hurrying to gather his things even as she returned to her desk. Well, at least he had plenty of time to figure out how to actually make a project out of this.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! Kudos to anyone who can guess who Mr. H is! :D I hope everyone is staying safe.   
> Madlenita- Thank you so much for reading! I look forward to your comments on each chapter! Hope you enjoyed this one.   
> Transparent_Reminder- I'm glad you like my writing style. It means a lot to hear that! Hopefully you continue to enjoy it as the fic progresses!


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone! My beta reader had some trouble getting to this chapter so it's a little later than planed but it's still here! I hope everyone enjoys it.

Brunhilde paced, watching the skies intently for any signs of something breaking through the clouds above. Norns but she wished Heimdall were here. The Benatar was due to arrive at any time; it had been for the past week. Which meant that she was spending a lot of time in the field outside of New Asgard, pacing pathways into the grass as she waited for any sign of a vessel. She’d tried to spend the time efficiently, practicing forms for the first couple of days, but had quickly given up on that. There wasn’t really much cause for fighting and there was paperwork to be done. Lots and lots of paperwork. She’d eventually had a table brought out so she could work while waiting, but that plan had also failed. Norway was known for sudden storms which placed any work she brought with her in significant risk. Unfortunately, none of the surviving Asgardians remembered how to recreate the technology which had controlled the weather in Asgard for centuries. Yet another pity. It meant that unless she wanted the papers to be sodden and useless, she was forced to find other means of distracting himself. Hence the pacing. 

Turning again as she reached the end of the field, Brunhilde began making her way back to the other side. Thunder rumbled overhead and she sighed. Maybe she would just go back to her house and work from there. Or from the town hall, although then she would be assailed by people coming to her with problems. Problems she could only do her best at handling based on what she vaguely remembered from Odin’s rule as well as Thor’s brief one. Gods did she need a drink. The thunder kept getting louder and with a start she realized it wasn’t dying down. Spinning around, she took in the silver and orange ship with a surge of relief. Finally, someone she could dump a good load of her problems on. 

Moving forward, she ignored the water being blown into her face as the ship made the final adjustments to land without crashing. Water was hardly the worst thing she’d ever gotten all over herself, after all. Shaking away those dark thoughts, she managed a smile as Thor moved down the ramp. “Hey. Looks like you made it back in one piece,” she said with a grin. It was hard not to stare at him and his changed appearance. He looked like he’d lost a little weight but the mittens were still present and his hooded sweatshirt had obviously seen better days. The cloth was stained with food and what she sincerely hoped were grease stains. Despite his unkempt appearance, though, his gaze was sharp and clear.

“Where is Loki?” Thor demanded, already looking over her shoulder and she resisted the sudden urge to hit her head into something. Or someone’s head, at any rate. 

“Not here. He’s safe where he is now,” she reminded Thor. “Probably safer than he would be here.” They’d been over this before but he still looked ridiculously put out by her words. 

“Alright, let me get this straight. We come all this way to help the big guy’s brother and he isn’t here. So where exactly is he then?” Rocket demanded, following Thor down the ship’s ramp. The walking tree followed him and behind him trailed the rest of the Guardians. 

“I’ll tell you after we go sit down and talk.” Brunhilde had no doubts as to what Thor’s response would be if she told them that Loki was in Paris. He’d be gone without even asking for more information then run around the city until he found Loki (or some poor, unfortunate person who looked like him). The panic a scene like that would create… Nope. She wasn’t even going to think about it.

The raccoon eyed her before sighing. “Groot, why don’t you go wait for us on the ship. We’ll be back soon, alright buddy?” he said and the living plant nodded, turning and retreating back up the ramp. “He’ll keep an eye on the ship while we talk,” he added to Brunhilde. 

“Why must we all be here? We should drop him off and go look for my sister,” Nebula hissed. “Staying here like this brings us no closer to finding her.”

Quill rolled his eyes. “Yeah? Well you were the one who said we should come here to help reunite Thor with his brother. That Gamora wouldn’t be found until she wanted to be,” he informed her.

“Yes. To drop him off. Not to stay here until they are reunited. Besides, just because we might not find her does not mean we should give up looking,” she snapped in response and Quill eyed her before falling silent, obviously not in disagreement from the expression on his face. 

“But we must help Thor!” Mantis protested weakly, voice overwhelmed by Drax speaking up.

“This man is a god. We must help him to locate his brother. Gamora would have wanted it. She, too, thought he was the embodiment of perfection,” Drax said before being almost drowned out by Quill’s shouted protests and Rocket’s laughter. Brunhilde moved to take charge, rounding on the group.

“Would you all just shut up?” she ordered them, all but Nebula falling silent, the latter scowling as she muttered something under her breath. “I wanted to talk to you before bringing Lackey here because he could be in danger from threats he doesn’t even know to avoid. If he does have his memories buried somewhere they might not be the best ones. We have no clue what happened to him after he fell from Asgard, nor exactly what befell him after he was stabbed on Svartalfheim. We know what happened on the Statesman and Sakaar sure as Hel wasn’t good. If he does remember it all at once we don’t know what that might do. The Loki I know had had years to come to terms with the information. Finding out he was a frost giant the first time caused him to try to destroy his entire race before he fell. This could break him in some other fashion. Seeing me didn’t cause anything to happen, at least not that I know of, but we can’t be sure. We barely knew each other. Maybe seeing you will be different.” 

“You mean I might trigger something in him which would cause him to lose himself again,” Thor summed up quietly and Brunhilde shrugged helplessly. 

“Yes? No? I don’t know. This sort of thing has never happened before, save in legends. We’re in uncharted territory with no means of navigating and I don’t like that. We must tread carefully or risk losing everything,” Brunhilde finished firmly. 

Rocket piped up. “But you’re still going to let the big guy meet his brother, ain’t ya?” She started to spin, ready to yell at him, before noticing how Rocket was watching the other Asgardian. Following his gaze she caught sight of the look on Thor’s face and her words were swallowed down almost as quickly as they’d risen. The thunder god’s expression was downcast as he picked at one of his mittens, an almost lost look on his face and Brunhilde winced. She’d been so stressed with dealing with matters on her end that she hadn’t really thought about Thor’s feelings on the matter. Of course he would want reassurance that he would see Loki again. 

“Of course you can see Loki. I’m just saying we should know as much information as possible before we initiate contact,” she said finally, gentling her voice. “I can catch you up on what has been going on since we first found him, but we’ll have to prepare for what we don’t know.”

There was a long moment of silence as they trudged along the ridge before Nebula spoke up. “I agree. I can tell you what happened after Loki fell from Asgard,” she declared and Brunhilde came to an abrupt halt, the others copying her. 

“You what?” she managed, finding her voice before the others could speak up.

“I know what happened to him after he fell up until he was sent to Terra to retrieve the Tesseract,” Nebula said as though commenting on the weather and not the past even Thor didn’t know about. 

“Tell us then. Now,” Thor said, voice low and dangerous.

“No, not here. Follow me,” Brunhilde said quickly, starting for her house as a brisk walk. It wouldn’t do to discuss this matter where too many ears could hear them, after all. She sped up, leading the group to where her cottage was situated near the docks. She liked the smell of the sea breeze, especially in the early morning when she had some time to herself. They arrived quickly considering the pace she’d set, Quill slightly out of breath and Mantis being partially supported by Drax. Quill was better than the average Midgardian, she supposed, but his stamina still didn’t fully compare to one trained by Thanos and Asgardians, even one as out of shape as Thor. The latter’s current state of fitness wouldn’t slow him down for long, especially not when he had a goal. 

As soon as they had all filed inside, the door shut behind them, Thor turned. “Now you will tell us,” he said, one hand stroking Stormbreaker. Judging by the way her gaze flickered down, that fact had not escaped Nebula’s attention. 

Still, she spoke up as she had promised. “It was when I was still… Still working for Thanos. Both Gamora and I. A man fell out of the void near Thanos’ domain. He was brought to us by the Chitauri. Sanctuary, my fa- Thanos called it. A sanctuary for those who were lost. It meant something different to him, obviously. The man was dressed in Asgardian garb but none from Asgard would have fallen in such a manner without being caught.” Thor’s hands tightened around Stormbreaker even as his jaw clenched. Brunhilde could almost hear him trying to protest those words and coming up with nothing. Of course Asgard, or Odin rather, would have assumed Loki dead after such a fall. “He had been driven mad by the Void. Or there was a madness to him, at least,” Nebula said dispassionately, not hesitating as she continued to speak. “He was treated until we knew he would live, by which point we gathered that he had not, in fact, fallen but had let go with no intent of surviving the fall.” Rocket’s breath caught and the sound reminded Brunhilde to breathe herself. Nebula’s face showed no signs of emotion as she kept speaking. “He spoke of how he could not go back, how we should leave him for dead. At times he did not know where he was and begged to speak with his brother. Once he was recovered enough, he was given to Thanos’ children for… Conditioning. His magic made him a good candidate to send after any possible Infinity Stones on Terra, after all. Maw had the most fun with him but we were all given a turn. I was… not kind.” There. Brunhilde noted the other woman’s jaw tighten slightly. So she did have some emotions about what had been done. 

“You tortured my brother. You made him into what he was when I met him next on Midgard?” Thor’s voice was almost deceptively calm and Rocket glanced up and over at him, a wary expression crossing his face. 

“Uh, look big guy, she was brainwashed by Thanos too, remember?” he asked nervously. 

“Aye. I remember. I also remember what Loki was like when I met him on Midgard afterwards,” Thor growled, starting forward, Brunhilde instantly moving to stop him. She wasn’t sure who would win in a match between the two but given Thor’s anger and Nebula’s obvious skills it was certain that one of them, at least, would end up dead. 

“Calm down,” she ordered him, Drax having grabbed Thor’s other arm. 

“I was not given a choice,” Nebula retorted, anger showing. “I was told to do whatever was needed to break him and I did. He took nearly a year to break, even with all of us. Still, by the end we had done our job. Thanks to Maw his memories, his sense of self, was shredded and only barely rebuilt into what our Master wanted it to be. He was lucky; somehow, during the invasion, he managed to break free of Maw’s control. Of course, his loss and subsequent capture meant Thanos lost an Infinity Stone. He never forgave him for that. Even had he succeeded and returned victorious, though, he would have been killed the minute his foot hit Sanctuary’s floor,” Nebula said and the room fell silent. 

“Okay, well, that was probably super unfortunate but he doesn’t remember any of that, right? So all’s good?” Quill muttered, inching slightly away from Nebula. 

“No. What if he suddenly remembers all of that?” Brunhilde snapped at him, still holding Thor back as the god of thunder stared murderously at the partial cyborg. “His memories might be gone or sealed or otherwise simply not accessible at the moment. Given the sound of things, they might not even be intact. Should they return in part he would be a child dealing with the memory of that torture being inflicted on him. Someone tearing your mind apart leaves a scar, similar to that from a physical wound. We don’t have the equipment to treat anything like that and Midgardian technology is woefully behind in that regard.” If only one of the soul forges had survived, or even simply one of the healers who’d known how to use them. 

“Then you keep an eye on him. If we make sure he knows you’re there for him he’ll have someone to lean on if they do come back.” 

Tearing his gaze away from Nebula, Thor turned to Quill. “My brother oft kept his own council above relying on others. Tis more likely he would simply keep everything to himself until he could no longer. When he loses control, Loki is impossible to predict. He counseled me against starting a war with Jotunheim and yet once he learned of his heritage he tried to destroy their planet using the Bifrost. Loki’s moods are mercurial and can change more rapidly than you would be able to imagine. Even I, his own brother, was unable to fully understand him.” 

Mantis took a step forward. “You feel… sad,” she said softly, tears welling up in her eyes as she watched Thor, hand on his arm and antenna glowing softly. “And lonely. You wanted to be able to understand him. It hurt that you did not, even when he died.” Gasping slightly, she pulled away, eyes darting to the ground. “I am sorry. I just wanted to be certain you would not attack Nebula. We are a family now, yes? And you cannot always choose your family.” After a moment Thor relaxed and, although she didn’t fully understand why, Brunhilde was grateful. She knew berserkers and Thor was definitely a prime example of one. Stopping him once he got started would be nigh impossible. Most of Asgard’s warriors fit that description, but fewer still were true berserkers. Lucky her to get one of the few that had survived.

“I talked to Pepper and she’s already purchased the apartment next to Lackey’s. We figured you’d want to live near him if we couldn’t bring him here,” she said after a few minutes of silence, ignoring Thor’s sniffles. “You can move in later this week. In the meantime I’ll catch you up on what’s been going on. We sent Loki to one of the Midgardian schools to keep him occupied. There’ve been a few incidents but nothing that hasn’t been able to be smoothed over,” she continued, dropping into one of the kitchen chairs before popping back up and starting to pace. 

“Why send the kid to school if he’s just going to come here eventually?” Rocket asked, looking around the group. “I mean, seems to me like no one really likes the place. Me, I learn better by doing,” he said proudly, tapping his chest.

“Trust me, Loki being bored is not a good thing,” Brunhilde said firmly and Thor nodded in agreement. She was surprised when he actually spoke up. 

“Aye. Besides, Loki always liked our lessons more than I did. He did better at them, at any rate. I think he truly enjoyed learning, even if he did not always like our teachers. He was always playing tricks on those he did not like. One time I was caught up in one. I ate something he’d meant to give to our swordmaster and felt ill for the entire week.” He was wearing a fond smile and Rocket stared at him in obvious disbelief. 

“So let me get this straight. Your brother poisons you instead of your teacher and that makes you happy?” he blurted out and Thor shook his head. 

“Loki felt terrible about it. He did my book work for me the entire time, even though he had to do it on top of his own. I never thought much of it at the time. Once I was better I kept telling him I felt ill so he could continue to do so while I focused on my weapons classes. I felt that I would never need to know about politics or any of the other subjects our tutors covered.” He smiled, a self deprecating grin. “He caught on within a day. The homework I turned in the following morn was so incorrect that our teacher made me stay behind until I had the answers memorized and could repeat them by rote. I demanded of Loki why he would do such a thing and he told me that if I had continued to get everything right it would have been too unbelievable. At the time I thought him to be unfair but in retrospect he was simply trying to make me learn what I needed to, since I hardly listened to him on the subject otherwise.” Thor sank back into one of the chairs. “Looking back I cannot believe how badly I treated him,” he mumbled, burying his face in his hands.

Brunhilde mentally cursed. She couldn’t deal with Thor having a breakdown. “Look, you all have had a long journey. Drinks are on me at the tavern so go on ahead and have some fun,” she told them. “Thor, why don’t you go get some rest?” she suggested as the others began to file out, Thor having started to move to follow them. Best to try to wean him off of the drink now as opposed to before he met Lackey.

Seeming to have the same as her, Rocket nodded. “Yeah. Don’t want to show up to meet your brother who’s suddenly a kid while you’re drunk or hungover, right? Look, I’m not very thirsty either so we can go to the Benatar together and hang out with Groot for a bit before we get some rest. Tomorrow everything will look better.” In that moment Brunhilde could have kissed him as Thor nodded, sniffling and wiping his nose on his sleeve as he got the rest of the way to his feet. 

“You are right, rabbit. If Loki could see me now, he’d-” He choked on his words and Rocket hastily ushered him out, leaving Valkyrie sitting at the table alone. Norns but this was exhausting. She wasn’t ready to deal with this but someone had to. Groaning, she put her head down to rest in her arms. She could do this. Somehow. Hopefully.

* * *

When classes were let out for the day, Serrure was all but skipping as he walked home from school. He had a project to work on and now he just needed to do more research. Which might be hard since all of the information he needed was probably hidden by copyright laws in America. Unless… He pulled out his phone, calling up the messaging app again.  _ Hey Peter, can you tell me a little more about the robots you ran into in London? How they worked? _ He sent, turning the corner before his apartment complex before he skidded to a halt, freezing. Oh no.

“Serrure?” The man in front of him asked, staring at him in shock from behind his shopping cart. 

“Paul,” Serrure managed, mind racing. “What are you doing here?” No one came up here and he’d begun to relax. There weren’t any tourists to get money from and anyone he’d known would have stood out like a sore thumb. No one wanted to risk having the cops get called on them. He noted Ikol, alert to the possible threat, dive down to land on a nearby tree, obviously keeping his distance just in case. 

“Well, I was on my way through to get to one of the new soup kitchens being opened on the other side of the city,” Paul said slowly, leaning against the cart as he looked Serure up and down, the boy becoming acutely aware of what his school clothes and backpack must look like to the other. “Where’ve you been? Enzo suddenly wants you and you disappear. Just gone, with all your stuff still where ya left it.” It probably hadn’t stayed there for long, Serrure thought slightly bitterly, although he couldn’t really blame them. “We all thought you was dead. Might have blamed Enzo for it, too, only he’s still looking for you; he was pretty worried that something had happened. Maria thought you might’ve left the city. You been hiding up here?” 

“No. Just passing through, like you,” Serrure said, all too aware that he was too clean and his clothes were too nice to really be able to pull this off. “They opened a new shelter and I stayed there for a bit. They had new clothes there,” he added.

“And a new backpack? And books?” Paul asked, not moving.

“Yes. Well, the backpack. For the extra set of clothes. The books I got at the library,” Serrure shrugged, trying to keep up the appearance of being calm. 

“You stole them, you mean.” Paul translated, although he still didn’t look entirely convinced, eyes darting to the hand Serrure had had the phone in before he’d palmed it into a pocket. 

Serrure nodded. “Well, yeah. Not like I can get a library card,” he told the other. Huh; he probably could now. All you needed was a permanent address, after all. “Look, I gotta keep moving so Enzo doesn’t find me. Could you at least give me a few days to relocate?” Paul thought it over before Serrure dug through his pockets, glad he kept his money on him as he pulled out three euro coins. “This is all I have.” The money had soon disappeared.

“Yeah, sure. I’ll give you a few days. Enzo’s pretty worried, though, so if he asks me I ain’t going to lie to him,” he told Serrure, starting to push his cart down the street. Serrure watched him leave, making sure he was out of sight before turning and hurrying down the road to his apartment, all but racing to throw the door open. 

Ikol flew in after him, landing on the back of the couch as he shut the door and he shot the bird a smile. He was glad the other was there; it felt good to have someone (or something) looking out for him and he trusted Ikol to keep him safe. Knowing how little Ikol liked being confined, he normally left a window open when he was home so Ikol could go in and out as the bird wished but after today… Well, he didn’t think he dared. This was a gated community, but gates could be climbed. Enzo might be worried now, but if he found out where Serrure was, how he had been living for the last couple of weeks he would probably be even madder than he had been before. If Enzo had thought he was missing (and possibly dead) he might have let any possible anger over Ikol slide. Serrure had no intentions of going back to the streets right away so if he lay low here and was careful when he went out everything should be fine until Paul told the other. That didn’t stop him from pulling the blinds shut on every room but the bedroom. He didn’t like to sleep in the dark. Being unable to see anything gave him a weird sensation of falling which made him panic. It had never been really dark when he’d been living on the streets as the numerous lights around the city always left the sky lit up. 

Settling on the couch, he was soon sitting there in silence, listening. For what, he wasn’t sure. Maybe for the sound of someone breaking in? Or for banging on the door. Some sign that this wasn’t over, that it was only the top of the iceberg. He’d thought everything would be fine, that maybe he could just live here without having to worry about where he’d come from, but that didn’t seem possible anymore. Biting his lip, he buried his face in his knees, drawing them up to his chest. It was nice here and he was really going to miss it. Still, he had a little time before anyone might come looking for him. Another week couldn’t hurt, provided Paul kept his word, and he would be able to gather supplies and pack during that time. Of course, it wouldn’t be that easy but what was? 

Ikol made a faint croaking sound, watching him from his perch on the back of the couch before hopping onto his shoulder. Serrure lifted his head, scrubbing at the tears still trailing down his cheeks. “Sorry, Ikol. I didn’t mean to alarm you,” he managed once he was sure he could speak without breaking down even further, the magpie’s head tilting until it looked concerned. “I would enjoy the next few days here for we likely won’t be anywhere as nice as this for a while,” he told the bird, lifting a hand so the bird could hop onto his finger. After a moment Ikol hopped onto it and he brought the bird around so they were face to face. “Maybe we can travel somewhere else. Although London was just attacked… Maybe Italy, then? If we go to Rome that is a fair distance from Venice,” Serrure mused out loud, stroking the bird’s feathers.

The bird fluttered its wings, turning its head to peer up at him. For some reason it looked almost agitated. “Oh, there is no need to worry. I promise I will look out for you.” Serrure swore. Ikol was his best friend, after all. Peter was nice but he was also an ocean away. They’d only really talked via text messages but at least he was more mature, likely due to his secret identity. The other kids his age were all just so… Well, childish. They were so concerned with sports, celebrities, heroes, who was wearing what, and who liked whom. It was all so dull. It was probably for the best that his only human friend could be reached via text messaging; he wouldn’t have anyone who would be let down if he disappeared. Although he might need to leave his phone behind…

Ikol’s nibble to his finger broke him out of his thoughts, the bird peering at him with a concerned expression. “Sorry. Here you go.” Setting the bird on the back of the couch despite its protests,Serrure was soon moving to search the apartment for a bag he could use to put supplies in. Something besides his backpack or else he’d have to wait to pack until the last minute. Unfortunately, whoever had stocked the apartment had considered that he might one day make a run for it and had made sure there were no bags to be found. He hadn’t been expecting a suitcase but something besides his backpack would have been nice. Oh well. Gathering a pencil and paper, Serrure was soon starting to list the supplies he had access to, starting to narrow down what would be easy to bring with him. He was in for a long night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks to everyone who read all the way to the end! We're moving along more and more quickly now!   
> Madlenita- Thank you for your review! We are definitely getting closer! I'm glad you're still interested in reading.   
> Althea- Thank you so much for the nice comments! I hope you continue to enjoy reading!


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's the next chapter! I hope everyone enjoys it!

Brunhilde was quickly finding that Thor was definitely not better. Or, if he had been with the Guardians, returning to Midgard had caused his progress to disappear. She wasn’t sure what she’d been expecting exactly, but this had not been it. Thor was fragile. He was fine with the Guardians, laughing and joking with them, but apparently the city reminded him too much of everything that had happened during the Blip. He’d taken to simply staying on the Benatar, forcing Brunhilde to make the trek out to visit him whenever she needed to talk with him. Worse was how easy it was to cause him to slip. Any reminder of Loki (who was a hard topic to avoid, considering their current situation) and the Asgard of old could cause him to tear up. Which left Brunhilde feeling as though she was walking on eggshells during every conversation they had, leaving her with a short temper and little patience. Thank the Norns today was the day he was going down to Paris. She might have bumped it up a little from the initial seven day wait just to give herself some relief. 

Ducking as she walked up the hatch and onto the ship, she looked around the messy common space. Spotting Thor sitting next to a small pile that contained his things, she moved over to join him. “Hey. You all set?” she asked, nodding to the bags. 

He didn’t respond for a few minutes, his head resting on his hands. She’d almost given up on a response and gone to find Rocket when he finally spoke. “What if it isn’t Loki? What if he never remembers me? Never remembers our childhood together?” His voice was soft as he spoke. 

Well, that was exactly the type of conversation she’d been hoping to avoid. Too late to run now, though. Moving to sit next to him she made sure to think of her response before answering. “Well, I know it’s Lackey. The boy looks exactly like him, if quite a bit younger, and he definitely has Seidr. Your friend, the Black Panther, was fooled by one of his tricks because of it.” she said slowly. “As for the rest… If it is Loki, whether or not he eventually remembers you, he is still your brother, right? Once we find a means of awakening him to that we’ll see what memories he has. If there are none of you both growing up together then consider this a chance to form new ones. Maybe fix any mistakes. You know…” Trailing off awkwardly Brunhilde looked around, not sure what else to say. She was much better at fighting (or drinking) than dealing with other people’s problems. Reassuring people was still new to her. Eyes skittering around the cabin, she suddenly noted Rocket standing there, watching her with an approving look. “I’ll be right back. Just think about what I said, alright?” she told Thor, getting to her feet and starting towards the raccoon. 

He turned, leading her deeper into the ship before turning. “Not bad. Not great, mind you, but not bad,” he told her, starting to fiddle with some parts she swore he hadn’t been holding when they’d started walking. 

“You’ve been looking out for him, I take it?” Brunhilde asked and Rocket nodded. 

“Yeah. Someone’s got to and I owe the guy for taking me to see Niðavellir. Plus he was pretty freaking awesome when he took Thanos out. Guy was pretty worked up after that. Well, that and losing his brother. So what’s the plan?” 

“Let him and Lackey meet. Continue trying to figure out how to awaken Lackey’s memories. I don’t honestly know. In what I remember of Asgardian history, such a thing has never happened before. Hela controlled death, but she would never have allowed Loki to return, especially not to Thor.” 

Rocket made a face. “Sounds like a great family,” he muttered. Brunhilde couldn’t disagree so she didn’t say anything in response. 

“Why do you want to know what the plan is?” she asked finally and Rocket turned suddenly serious, putting aside what he was working on. 

“Because, if this doesn’t work out you know what’ll happen, don’t you? Just think about it. He killed Thanos to get revenge for his brother. I mean, that’s obviously why he went crazy and just hacked the guy’s head off. Then he becomes depressed, and boy do I mean depressed, and drinks himself into, well, that.” Rocket nodded towards the other room “Me? I like him. I don’t really want to see what’ll happen to him if his brother gets hurt again. So we need a plan for in case something happens.” 

“How do we plan for something like that?” Brunhilde exclaimed before hastily lowering her voice with a quick glance over her shoulder. “When I knew Lackey, he was a private person. Kept everything to himself. The only person he ever opened up to was Thor and obviously he didn’t tell his brother everything.” Like what had happened after his fall through the void. “We don’t know how many other secrets he had which could come back and try to kill us. Or him. Honestly, though, I think one of our biggest concerns might be Lackey himself. He let go of Gungir knowing he would likely not survive the fall into the void,” she reminded Rocket, the raccoon hissing slightly in remembrance. 

“Right. Well that’s great. Just great. So we’re trying to keep a suicidal guy alive. Fan-fu*****tastic,” he groused and Brunhilde grimaced. 

“It’s only a concern if Loki remembers any of that,” Brunhilde quickly replied. “Thor will probably not want to let the kid out of his sight so he’ll notice something if those memories or feelings return.” Hopefully. Thor sounded like he had recognized some of the mistakes he had made when they had been children but that didn’t mean he was without fault and wouldn’t make new ones. If Asgardians had one universal fatal flaw, it was pride. Pride in themselves, in their abilities, in the fact that they were always in the right. Wonder who they’d gotten that from, huh? 

“We’ll help him. Quill wants to see if the person who made your communicator can help us find Gamora. We’ll stay here and it’ll just be a quick trip in the pod if Thor needs us,” Rocket said practically and Brunhilde wondered what he’d had to do to get the others to agree to that; there was no way it had been Quill’s idea. 

“Thank you. He looks better than he did when he left Midgard. I think he’s even lost some of that weight,” she managed finally, feeling awkward. She knew that retired warriors gained weight. Some not-so-retired warriors put on weight as well and used it to their advantage (she’d heard of Volstagg during one of Thor’s few drinking sessions on the Statesman). If that had been the case with Thor she wouldn’t feel so bad looking at him. No, Thor’s weight gain was a sign of how broken he was and couldn’t possibly be healthy. If he was losing some of it perhaps that bespoke a better state of mind.

“Eh. No problem. It’s not like I had much to do with that,” Rocket said, shrugging in an almost embarrassed manner. “Well, I’m going to go make sure everything’s ready to go. You should go finish saying goodbye to Thor before we head out,” he added, already scampering towards the pod they were going to be taking. 

Making her way back to where Thor was still sitting, Brunhilde cleared her throat self-consciously. “Hey. I guess it’s goodbye,” she managed awkwardly. Thor glanced up, looking briefly confused as he was pulled out of his thoughts before he nodded, forcing a smile. 

“Aye. I’m certain, once Loki is better, that he would be happy to return here with me,” Thor said and Brunhilde nodded, deciding against mentioning how long it could be until then.

“Right. Look, just focus on taking care of yourself. Lackey’s a survivor. He’ll do what he needs to do to make it through so you need to focus taking care of yourself,” she told him. “I’ll make sure I get your house ready for the two of you for whenever you come back,” she added.

“I- I was thinking of taking Loki travelling. He hated being in one place for long even when we were children and if he does not regain his memories I know he would love to see the universe. I am sure he would love the Guardians. We could go adventuring and see everything the galaxy has to offer,” Thor said after a moment, looking almost hesitant as he peered over at Valkyrie. 

No. No, that wasn’t the plan! Thor was supposed to return so he could lead their people instead of her! Still, she forced herself to choose her words carefully. “Fine. You’ll still have a house ready for you, whenever you choose to return.” She could almost see Rocket nodding in approval. “Look, I’d better get back to work but good luck. I mean it,” She told him, hesitating before reaching out to squeeze his forearm. “Be careful.” 

“I will. I give you my word,” Thor promised, slowly returning the gesture, mittened hands rough against her skin. Pulling back and turning, she was soon starting the trek back to New Asgard. Everything was out of her hands now and she could only pray everything went well.

* * *

Walking back from the school, Serrure carefully monitored his surroundings as he tried his hardest not to run. He felt like he was moving far too slowly to not stand out and yet he was still faster than many of the other students walking home around him. Ikol had been waiting for him outside of the school for the first time since Serrure had started going, flying down to perch on his shoulder protectively as he returned to his apartment. Maybe the magpie really had picked up on the situation somehow. It wouldn’t be the first time the other had proven itself to be smarter than the average bird, after all. 

Reaching up, Serrure absentmindedly rubbed the bird’s head, comforted by the other’s presence. He’d nearly gotten detention today, too distracted by making the final plans for his escape that he hadn’t been focusing on the teacher. Two more days before he left Paris, after all. He still wasn’t entirely sure how to get to Italy, but it couldn’t be too hard. He had enough money to get a train ticket to Southern France. From there he could either stow away on the train or try to hike into Italy. He’d been trying to work that out when he’d been caught and it had taken some fast talking to get the teacher to let him off the hook. After all, he was otherwise a good student (grade-wise if not necessarily attention-wise). Still, he couldn’t afford to have any of his teachers reporting that something was wrong to the principal. He would probably feel it was his job to report it to the still-unknown guardian who might then feel the need to intervene. As much as he still wanted to figure out who that was there were more important things; his plan relied on him leaving over the weekend so the school wouldn’t report him as missing for a couple days. He could even draw that out a little longer if he called in sick for a few days at the start of the week, at least until they demanded a doctor’s note. 

Slowly turning into the apartment complex, Serrure began digging out his key as he made his way towards the courtyard. He kept the key hidden in the seam of his hoodie, where no one could pick his pocket and take it. He knew from experience how easy it was to do that. 

About to put the key in the lock, he paused at the sounds coming from around the corner. Wasn’t that where the perpetually empty apartment had stood? Frozen, he debated whether or not he should go and look. One one hand, it could be a new neighbor. At the very least it would be interesting to meet them before he left. On the other hand, though, it could also be Enzo accidentally searching for him in the wrong place. Figuring that the latter was less likely given the lack of furnishings in the other apartment and curiosity about the former getting the better of him, Serrure was soon inching around the corner, slowly moving towards the open door. Taking off from his perch on Serrure’s shoulder, Ikol circled tightly overhead.

“Thank you, my friends!” a voice boomed at a volume Serrure was certain he could have heard from his apartment. “I appreciate your assistance very much.” 

“Well, considering how you wouldn’t have known what to do without us, buddy, I’d say you should be,” another voice sounded. 

“Ah, rabbit, I will miss you,” the first voice replied fondly and there were the brief sounds of a scuffle following that before a third voice spoke. 

“Hey, guys, I know we were helping Thor move in and all, but it’s time we got back to the Benatar,” another male voice said. 

“Yeah, yeah. You just want to get back and see if your search for Gamora got any results, don’t you Quill? It’s not a secret that you run that program in the background, you know,” the second voice retorted slyly and the person named Quill began sputtering in response. 

“What? No! That’s not… It isn't like that!” he exclaimed and the first person (Thor?) abruptly burst into booming laughter. 

“Nevermind. As I said, I am most glad for your help,” he said and Serrure quickly retreated back to his door as footsteps approached the front of the other apartment, fumbling with his key as he tried to pretend he wasn’t secretly watching from under the fringe of his hair. 

The first one to appear in the courtyard was a man dressed in red leathers. His voice marked him as the one called Quill as he continued to protest his interest in this Gamora person. A walking raccoon followed him out, laughing as he continued to poke fun at Quill. Behind both of them was a large man with long, blonde hair partially swept back and a messy beard. He was wearing mitten-like gloves with the fingers cut off and a hoodie, all of which looked odd on him for some reason Serrure couldn’t pin down. Was rescuing people off the street a past-time for those with money or something? The man was laughing at the other’s words before his eyes met Serrure’s and he suddenly froze, lips mouthing something the boy couldn’t make out. Before Serrure could make himself move to open his door and escape from the situation the other man was already moving, making his way over before stopping in front of Serrure, just out of arm’s reach. 

“Hello. I- My name is Thor,” he managed, eyes looking moist as he tentatively extended a hand. Serrure eyed the proffered appendage for a moment before slowly reaching out and clasping it, not entirely sure why he was doing so.

“Serrure,” he replied softly. Despite his outward appearance, the other’s grip was surprisingly strong. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, M. Thor,” he added, figuring it was probably better to be polite. He glanced up to meet the other’s gaze even as Ikol suddenly landed on the ground nearby, gaze also latched onto the man in front of him. “That’s Ikol. He’s my…” He trailed off, not wanting to call the other his pet when Ikol stayed with him by choice. He was also busy staring at the bird in shock. Ikol had never shown much interest in strangers before now unless it was to either point them out as marks or to warn Serrure about them. He couldn’t help but feel a twinge of jealousy followed by fear. Ikol wouldn’t leave him, surely. 

“It’s just Thor,” The other replied, not even sparing a glance for the bird as he studied Serrure’s face, obviously looking for something. Feeling suddenly awkward with all the attention on him and acutely aware of Quill and the raccoon’s eyes on him, Serrure pulled his hand back. 

“I have to go. We were assigned a lot of homework tonight,” he managed lamely, nevermind the fact that the homework was already finished, having been done during his classes so he could free his evenings for planning and packing. Almost dropping his key in his haste, Serrure quickly unlocked his door, stepping inside before quickly pulling the door closed behind him. He leaned back against the solid wood, sinking to the ground as he started shaking. It felt as though his world had been suddenly knocked off-kilter, although he wasn’t sure how the other could have caused such a thing. Thor had been nice, if a little strange. That didn’t stop the rapid breaths from escaping as he sat there, the dreaded feeling of falling consuming him.

* * *

Thor stared at the closed door in front of him. He wasn’t sure how he felt. Happy to see his brother alive and well? Sad that the other didn’t recognize him? Relieved that the other’s memories of his last moments onboard the Statesman weren’t present? He honestly didn’t know. After a few moments of silence, the rabbit finally spoke up. 

“Well, that went pretty well, didn’t it?” he asked. “I mean, sure the guy didn’t remember you, but we already knew that would probably be the case, didn’t we?” Thor managed a jerky nod. He’d known. He’d also figured, Loki being Loki, that the other had been pretending when he’d met Valkyrie. That this was all because of what they’d been talking about on the Statesman immediately prior to the mad Titan’s arrival; he still couldn’t think about the other’s name without shuddering. 

_ “Thor, I don’t disagree that Midgard should be our destination. With everything that has happened to our people I even think going to be a good idea. However… I do not think it would be wise for me to be associated with you when we arrive. After what I have done, they will likely react with suspicion at best. I can go and find someplace else to live.” _

Thor hadn’t even thought before he’d responded.  _ “Nonsense, brother. You will come with us and we will show them that you have changed. If they cannot accept you then I will not stay.”  _ He’d watched as Loki’s face had twisted, a myriad of emotions present, each one indecipherable to him at the time. Now, with everything he’d learned, he was left with so many questions about that last conversation. Had Loki been trying to flee, knowing Thanos would be searching for him, in order to protect what was left of their people? Had he been happy that Thor was willing to stand up for him or irritated that his brother didn’t think he could defend himself? Lifting a hand, Thor scrubbed his face in hope of hiding the traces of tears in his beard. 

“Aye,” he agreed half-heartedly. Was this a trick on Loki’s part or was it true that his brother didn’t remember him? He was no longer sure. 

“Hey, Thor, listen here,” Rocket said softly after a moment, moving over to stand next to Thor as he led the other back towards the entrance to the apartment complex. “Whether or not he remembers you right now I’m sure he eventually will. You’ll make good memories together in the meantime. Just… Don’t expect anything from him yet. Give it time. Be his friend until then. If he’s naming dumb birds he could probably use one,” he continued before letting out a yelp as the magpie suddenly flew into his face. “Stupid bird!” he yelled, pulling something that looked like a gun out before Thor hastily put his hand over the other’s. 

“Don’t. If the bird is my brother’s friend I would not see it hurt,” he said, the magpie circling briefly overhead before disappearing back the way they had come. He’d thought it had followed his brother inside but, to be fair, he hadn’t been paying it overly much attention.

“It deserves it,” Rocket growled before glancing at Thor and falling silent, shaking his head. “Fine. I won’t kill it. Yet,” he said, although his expression was that of a person sucking on a lemon. 

“Hey, I don’t want to interrupt or anything, but what about ‘time to go’ didn’t you get?” Quill called from where he was a fair distance ahead of them and Thor couldn’t help but smile. 

“Yes, you should both be off. I am sure we will meet again soon and perhaps at that point you will also be able to meet my brother,” he told them, picking up his pace slightly so as to catch up with Quill. 

“Yeah. Sure. You just make sure he stays safe until we do,” Rocket said and Thor nodded, throat tight. Nothing was going to happen to Loki, not while he was here. The silence lasted until they reached the park where they’d left the pod, a large crowd gathered around the vehicle. Pausing just before they reached them, feeling self conscious, Thor moved to give both Quill and Rocket a hug. 

“Be safe, my friends. Until we meet again,” he told them and Rocket sniffed slightly, pulling back and nodding as he moved to push his way through the crowd as he started for the ship. It made a smile cross Thor’s face to see how much the other was going to miss him. Even Quill managed a small nod. 

“Yeah. Maybe next time you’ll get to meet Gamora again,” he noted a little awkwardly.

“Right. Provided she agrees to come with you,” Rocket cackled, hearing apparently good enough to pick up the other’s words despite the rapidly parting crowd. “Come on, lover boy. Let’s get back to the others,” he called, and Thor stepped back a safe distance (before doubling that upon remembering who was piloting the craft) and watched with the rest of the crowd as the ship took off into the sky. He remained until it was out of sight before turning, starting to trek back towards his new dwelling. 

“Hey, wait up.” A voice called from behind him and he turned, confused. Why would someone want him? Even if they recognized him, surely they would realize that he was of no use to them. The voice’s owner ran up, a boy of maybe around 16 Midgardian years wearing a jacket with his hands jammed in the pockets. “I need to ask you a question,” he added as he came to a halt. His clothes were patched and covered in stains. While once it would have curled Thor’s nose, he was hardly one to judge now.

“How can I help you?” he asked instead, hands picking at his sweatshirt nervously. Any second now the other would recognize him. 

“I was wondering if you’d seen a young boy around here. Maybe around eleven or twelve. Dark hair, green eyes. Clever. He tends to prefer a hoodie and a jacket and lately he’s taken to carrying around a backpack. I can give you enough money to buy dinner if you tell me whatever you know,” the boy promised. At first there was a rush of relief. They hadn’t realized who he was and had instead mistaken him for another Midgardian, apparently a homeless one at that. About to tell them their mistake, his chest suddenly went cold as he realized who they had been describing. The boy was watching him, eyes glinting in a way that Thor didn’t like. Once he might not have thought twice about telling them where Loki was, or even about leading them there himself, trusting in their good intentions. Not anymore. Now he had something incredibly precious to lose.

“Nay. I’ve not seen him,” he responded finally, muscles tensing. If the other was after his brother he couldn’t simply sit back, could he? “What do you want with him?” he tried to ask casually. 

“None of your business,” The boy informed him, apparently no longer pretending to be polite now that he knew Thor didn’t have what he wanted as he made what was obviously a rude gesture with his left hand before starting back to a small group of similarly dressed boys. As he did so he took his remaining hand stiffly out of the pocket. Thor watched him leave, noting that the other’s right hand was swollen and looked infected. Judging by how little the other moved it, it was possible that there was nerve damage from the degree of inflammation, something he’d seen a couple of times on the battlefield when healers had been scarce. 

He continued on his way, carefully checking behind him to make sure no one was following him until he could enter the gates around the apartment complex, relaxing slightly once he was inside. As he entered the courtyard, he took a deep breath of the flower-laced air. This place reminded him of Mother’s garden on Asgard. She had tended to it diligently every day she could spare the time and even some when she couldn’t. While Thor had enjoyed it on occasion when he’d been much younger, he knew Loki had always spent time there up until right before his fall, often helping their mother with what Thor had once deemed ‘women’s work’. Maybe he could work on a garden with Loki, once the other had regained his memory. It would be a good means of honoring their mother as even seeing Frigga again hadn’t dulled the ache of her loss. 

If someone was after his brother, he would do anything to keep him safe. Glancing in the direction of his brother’s apartment he noted that the lights were all on in Loki’s apartment, but the windows had all been drawn tight and shuttered so the glow only filtered out through the cracks. Did that mean that his brother knew that someone was after him? Probably. Loki had always been smart, after all. Leaving the lights on wasn’t the smartest move his brother could make, but Loki had been afraid of the dark as a child. Thor wondered if that was why or if there was another reasoning that he couldn’t follow.

Turning, he was soon making his way towards his apartment. He would need to rest if he was going to protect his brother. First, though, he needed to eat.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The moment people have been waiting for! From this point on Thor will be more of a major character. I wanted to note that, since I am trying to make this fic follow as much of the previous source material as possible, Thor is not going to be miraculously better. Even if Loki is now back, Thor still watched him die. After spending some time with the Guardians of the Galaxy he is doing a little better but he isn't back to the way he was. Just wanted to explain why he might seem ooc. :D   
> Madlenita- Thanks for your review! Sorry this chapter wasn't as fast but at least it wasn't too late. I should probably just change my goals for updating times. :D   
> toad_in_the_road- We'll see how Serrure handles things. ;) I've been meaning to say this, but I love your username!   
> Cartlin (AcaciaJules)- Sorry for dragging things out. :D I just want to try to make it as realistic as possible. And we'll have to see how Serrure responds to what the others are doing. Thor and Brunhilde are coming up against the same problem as Odin and Frigga did: they want to keep Loki from being hurt but that is best done (in their minds) by hiding the truth. I always saw Odin's choice as being a bad decision made for the right reasons. He might not have been the best parent in the MCU but he tried, at least in my interpretation. :D Odin in the comics is a terrible parent for most of it, though.  
> Random-traveler- Well, here it is! I hope you enjoyed them meeting, even if it wasn't for very long, yet. Honestly, their meeting was one of the scenes I planned this fic around. The other scene is a ways in the future. I hope the meeting was everything you were looking for!  
> Althea- Yeah, I'm a fan of slow and natural stories, which means I take a while to get places. There were certain things I planned out which had to happen before Thor arrived, which is why it's been a little drawn out. :D


	11. Fight Club

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's sort of on time! :D My job hasn't really picked up yet, though, so we'll see if I can keep up with updating once a week. Still, I'll do my best!

Serrure was determined to forget about his new neighbor. Once he’d recovered from the inexplicable breakdown he’d had after seeing the other, he’d searched the apartment for Ikol only to find no trace of his friend. He’d finally given up and instead begun to ready what he needed to leave, stacking everything neatly in the center of the apartment. The bird had been acting strange when they’d met Thor. For one, he rarely saw Ikol on the ground, not to mention the fact that the other hadn’t followed him inside. 

A sudden knocking at the window had broken him out of his thoughts and he’d glanced up to see Ikol perched on the sill, tapping on the glass. Quick to let the bird in, he’d been glad for the other’s companionship as he quickly closed the window behind the bird. It wasn’t too long afterwards that he had gone to bed, wanting the relative peace it offered. Instead he’d spent the night restlessly tossing from side to side, falling fitfully in and out of sleep before finally getting up in the morning to go to school. 

As he tiredly got ready, staring at his reflection in the mirror, Serrure tried to stop his still racing heart. His new neighbor didn’t matter and before the end of a week he’d never seen him again. Whoever Thor was, he wasn’t anything Serrure needed to bother himself with. He had more than enough to think about as it was. 

His neighbor had different plans, apparently. As Serrure left the complex, Ikol on his shoulder, he kept feeling like he was being watched. Glancing over his shoulder, he sighed before turning to confront the person clumsily following him. “You aren’t really being subtle, you know. What do you want?” he asked, folding his arms with a frown. “I could call the police,” he warned suspiciously. 

Thor abashedly moved out from where he’d been trying to hide behind one of the larger light posts. He’d apparently forgotten his girth, which had been sticking out rather noticeably. “I-I was just hoping we could talk,” he said awkwardly. There was something about his words that seemed off in a way Serrure hadn’t noticed the day before and couldn’t quite pinpoint. It didn’t sound quite like French. Was the other speaking English, then? If so he really didn’t understand why there was such a fuss about learning the language. 

“Right now? I’m going to school,” he pointed out. He’d been hoping to avoid running into the other. Still, Ikol wasn’t stepping in so hopefully that meant nothing was going to happen. 

“Oh. I shall accompany you, then,” Thor replied, brightening. Apparently he couldn’t take a hint.

“What did you want to talk about, then?” Serrure asked after a few moments of silence. “Did you get brought to live here as well?” he added, eyeing the other’s clothing. It was the same as what he’d been wearing yesterday. Did he not have any other clothes? That seemed strange if so; Serrure had been given far more clothing than he could wear in a week, let alone two. 

Thor hesitated slightly. “I guess you could say that,” he said finally and Serrure couldn’t help but start laughing. 

“You are a terrible liar,” he informed Thor around his sniggering. “I mean really terrible.” Well, if the other didn’t want to tell him it wasn’t really his place to pry. Except that he wanted to know. “Are you going to tell me why you’re really here?” Did this have something to do with his mysterious guardian or was it completely unrelated? Serrure wasn’t sure which it was. Surely it couldn’t be a coincidence and yet Thor didn’t seem like the type of person who might be associated with someone with loads of money. He could be a plant and purposefully be dressed like this. Or he could be exactly what he appeared to be, in which case he might know Enzo. 

“I… I came here to look for my brother,” the other finally replied, carefully choosing his words as he thought them over. 

Oh. That wasn’t what he’d been expecting. “Was he one of the returned?” Serrure asked, head tilting. “I thought most of them had gone back to their families already.” 

“No, he was not. Not exactly,” Thor said and Serrure blinked, slightly intrigued. That was strange. Had his brother run away from home then? Why would Thor think he was anywhere here?

“Well, this is me,” he said after a few minutes, gesturing at the school even as Ikol took off. “Good luck with finding him,” he offered, picking up his pace until he was safe inside of the school, heart beating quickly in his chest. Thor was intense. Seeing him stirred conflicting feelings of trust and suspicion. Why would he feel trust for a complete stranger? It didn’t make any sense, especially considering his experiences. If anything, he should distrust Thor on principle alone. That discrepancy between his rational mind and his emotions was more than enough of a reason to avoid Thor. At least with classes all day he would have plenty of time to figure out how to get home without possibly running into his neighbor. Just two more days before he could leave. He was surprised by how sad that thought made him, feet on autopilot as they carried him to his first class of the day. It was hard to believe that he’d only been here for a couple of weeks; the apartment already felt more like home than anywhere else and even school, while boring most of the time, was familiar. There was nothing he could do about it, though. He had to leave. Sliding into his seat, he was soon focusing outwardly on the class, wanting to both avoid getting in trouble as well as get the most out of the lesson before he left even as he worked on the problem of how to get home in the back of his mind.

* * *

The last bell of the day rang and almost immediately there was a burst of motion as students started to head for the doors, talking loudly among themselves as they all headed home. Serrure followed the crowd out of the classroom before slipping over to the library and holing himself up in there as he waited for time to pass. Even if Thor actually was waiting for him to leave the other would have to give up eventually. Besides which, Serrure could escape through the back door and further shake him off, even if he was more persistent than Serrure thought. 

Once he’d deemed enough time to have passed, Serrure followed through with his plans. Peering out the back, he was soon heading down various alleyways as he wound his way back to his apartment. Ikol had joined him within seconds of his leaving, the bird landing on his shoulder as he walked along. Serrure wasn’t sure whether focusing on losing Thor was what caused him to forget to keep an eye out for other threats or if he’d simply gotten sloppy when he rounded the corner in time to find his way blocked by a group of older children he knew sometimes hung out with Enzo. The magpie let out an alarmed cry, jumping into the air and wheeling briefly overhead before abruptly flying off, much to Serrure’s surprise and consternation. He’d have to get away on his own, it seemed. Before he could retreat back to the relative safety of the school, though, he heard a voice behind him. 

“There you are,” Enzo said, stepping out from one of the side streets to block Serrure’s escape. “You know, out of everywhere I thought you’d run off to I never even suspected here. What did you do, trick someone into adopting you? Steal someone else’s life? Those are some nice looking clothes you’re wearing.” Serrure slowly turned, trying not to let on how nervous he was at hearing the nastiness in the other’s voice. 

“Enzo… I’m sorry about what happened. Ikol isn’t a pet, he’s a wild bird. I couldn’t control what he did to you,” he said carefully.

Enzo smiled, the expression not quite reaching his eyes. “Oh, I’m not even mad about that anymore. You know, I was actually worried when you didn’t show up again. We all thought you’d died or something and I thought well, this all wouldn’t have happened if I hadn’t made him feel threatened. Then, just the other day, I find out that you’re wearing clean clothes and hanging around the upper districts. How long were you going to keep all of this for yourself? Were you ever going to share with the rest of us?” Enzo demanded angrily, nods of agreement coming from the other teens. 

“I wasn’t-” Serrure began before a sudden punch to the face sent him falling backwards into the brick wall behind him, head connecting hard before he slid to the ground, stunned. 

“I don’t want to hear your excuses,” Enzo informed him harshly, words sounding as though they were making their way to him through a tunnel. “We’re going to take whatever you owe us right now. See how long you get to stay in your fancy apartment then.” He started towards Serrure, the boy weakly moving to try to protect his head when a sudden bellow of rage sounded.

“Get away from him!” a voice roared and it took him a moment to recognize it. Oh. Thor had apparently found him after all and he could vaguely make out Ikol’s form flitting frantically around Thor’s head. Apparently Thor hadn’t been working for Enzo, Serrure thought vaguely. 

He could hear the laughter in Enzo’s voice as the other replied. “What do you care? We don’t have a problem with you but if you get in our way you’ll get the same treatment as him.” 

“We’ll see about that.” Came the low response. Serrure was fairly certain he passed out after that because the next thing he knew someone was carefully trying to pick him up. He couldn’t stop the moan which escaped as the motion caused the pain in his head to spike and he nearly blacked out again. 

“Sorry. I’m sorry,” Thor murmured softly. “We should get you to a hospital,” he said worriedly and Serrure managed to regain enough energy to shake his head before promptly wishing he hadn’t. 

“Please don’t,” he whispered, leaning back up against Thor as the world around him spun. “Can- can you take me back to my apartment?” he asked quietly, the other hesitating before nodding in response.

“Aye,” he agreed and Serrure closed his eyes, surroundings once again fading away. He only vaguely felt the other gingerly searching his pockets a few minutes later, registering the mumbled curses before he was finally placed on a couch. He lay there, floating in a haze of pain for some length of time before finally regaining enough consciousness to open his eyes. The first thing he noted was that he wasn’t in his apartment. That was enough to make him abruptly sit up, one ice pack going flying and another falling to the ground as a result of his flailing. 

“Where-?” he began before Thor appeared in the doorway, holding another bag of ice. 

“I couldn’t find your key so I brought you here instead,” he said, quickly moving forward. “Lo- Serrure, you should lie down. You hit your head during the fighting,” he added, putting the bag down to help Serrure maneuver until he could relax back on the couch. 

Oh. Right. He hid his key so others couldn’t find it. Feeling a little foolish for forgetting that, Serrure let himself be guided back down to a reclined position, noting Ikol perching on the back of the couch, worriedly watching him. “Thank you for your help. How did you know? That they were going to attack me, I mean,” he asked Thor hoarsely.

“I ran into them yesterday when I was returning from seeing my friends off. They were asking about someone matching your description. Then your pet came and found me, acting most upset,” Thor told him and Serrure relaxed further. Well, that explained why Thor had been following him that morning; he must have been worried that they would find him. Still, he’d put himself in danger for a complete stranger, someone he’d only met for a couple of minutes a few hours prior.

“He’s not my pet,” he said almost automatically. “Sorry you had to deal with them… Were you hurt?” he asked and Thor shook his head.

“Nay. They did not lay a hand on me. I made certain that they would leave you alone as well,” he added and Serrure couldn’t help the incredulous laugh that escaped him. 

“You? You chased them off?” It wasn’t that he doubted Thor’s prowess, it was just… Well, he didn’t look like a fighter. Of course, the only fighting Serrure had seen had been the videos on the news from Mysterio and some older clips of the Avengers, not with regular people, so that could explain a bit. Peter also didn’t look like much of a fighter despite being an Avenger. “You’re sure they won’t return?” he couldn’t help but ask, a flicker of fear flowing through him as he looked back up at Thor. 

“I swear it. If they do, I will be right here and shall stand by your side,” Thor promised, which led back to the part Serrure still didn’t understand.

“Why would you help me? You have no reason to,” he asked after a moment, suddenly feeling a sense of deja vu. He’d used that argument with Mr. Fury. Why would someone help others when they could be hurt in the process? Yet Thor had seen a relative stranger in danger and risked himself to make sure Serrure was safe. 

“I couldn’t stand by, not when I knew I could stop them. You could say surrender isn’t in my nature,” Thor told him, a strange weight on his last words as an almost wistful look crossed his face. 

Serrure watched him, the urge to laugh at the absurdity of the situation dying as he noted how serious Thor looked. He finally managed a smile, glad it didn’t devolve into hysterical laughter. “Thanks again. Really.” He owed the other now. How could he possibly repay something like this? “Is there something I can help you with?” he asked, not wanting to feel indebted to anyone.

Although he started to shake his head, Thor hesitated before changing the motion to a nod. “I would not mind it if we could talk,” he offered almost hesitantly. “We can meet wherever you are comfortable if you would rather not meet me here or in your apartment. It has been so long since… Since I have been able to talk freely with someone. I would appreciate the opportunity to do so again. Of course, if you do not wish to, I would understand…” He trailed off, looking suddenly uncertain as he fidgeted with his mittens, looking down.

Well, that had been one of the tamer requests Serrure had been fearing the other would make. Actually, it hadn’t even made the list of possible favors. “I have to go to school and there’s homework to do as well but I suppose I wouldn’t mind. For a little bit,” he said finally. If Enzo and his gang were really going to leave him alone he didn’t need to flee to Italy right away. He could maybe stay here for a little longer, at least until Thor left. There was no way he’d be safe if that happened. He relaxed back as a wave of exhaustion flowed over him, eyes sliding shut as he began to drift off. Ikol moved from the back of the couch to nest in the hollow between his shoulder and his head, the warmth radiating from the soft feathers comforting as he let himself succumb to sleep.

* * *

The next couple of days were surprisingly pleasant, especially considering that after he’d fallen asleep he hadn’t woken up when Thor had tried to rouse him, resulting in the other taking him to the hospital. Serrure figured he could have had it a lot worse. He’d been diagnosed with a minor concussion and had been kept in the hospital for observation, considering his blackouts. They were planning on releasing him tomorrow, something Serrure was relieved by. He hated having people constantly checking on him and he had no idea whether he was expected to pay for this when he left or if his guardian would simply be billed. Ikol was also not allowed in the hospital, something which would have left him feeling bored and alone if it hadn’t been for his new neighbor. Thor was, surprisingly, the highlight of the whole experience thus far. He’d gone by the school to pick up Serrure’s homework from Friday but otherwise hadn’t left his bedside. The apologies were getting a little old as Thor did so nearly every time something reminded him of Serrure’s injuries, but otherwise they had passed the time he’d been awake in conversation. 

It had started out a little awkwardly. Serrure hadn’t been entirely sure what to say to a complete stranger and Thor apparently had just as many ideas of topics to discuss since he had sat there silently, staring at Serrure as though hoping that a conversation would simply start up between them as though by magic. He’d been the first to break the quiet, though, to ask what Serrure was learning in school. 

After staring at him for a few moments, Serrure had shaken his head. “You wouldn’t be interested,” he’d finally told the other, staring down at the chemistry book in his lap. He doubted Thor would understand either, given his appearance. 

“Yes I would,” Thor had instantly protested. “Try me,” he’d all but begged and Serrure had eventually given in, if only so they wouldn’t return to sitting in uncomfortable silence. To his immense surprise, Thor had been more fun to talk to than he’d supposed. While the other didn’t always understand what Serrure was talking about when he used the words from the books he understood the concepts behind them surprisingly well. He was even able to discuss some of the subjects beyond what was in the textbooks, much to Serrure’s delight.

By this point their conversations had become comfortable enough that when Thor asked what Serrure remembered from before he’d been taken in he only hesitated slightly to gather his thoughts before responding. 

“Well, you already know about the Snap and the Blip and all,” he said carefully, gaze resting on the blanket covering his legs as he picked at it. “I don’t remember a lot from before the Snap. Actually, to be honest, I don’t remember anything. Nothing at all. The first memory I have is of suddenly finding myself on a bridge over the Seine. Around me some people were shouting and laughing and hugging one another while the others just looked confused about what was going on, like how I felt,” Serrure said softly and when his gaze flickered up he noted Thor’s brow furrowing. 

“You do not remember how you got there? Or anything at all from before?” he asked and Serrure shook his head. 

“No. One of the people on the bridge brought me to the hospital. He must have told me his name at the time but I don’t remember it anymore. Just how loud everything was when we got there. People were screaming and crying, even in the hospital. I learned later that a lot of the people affected by the blip were being taken there to be looked over by a doctor or to be reunited with their families. I was placed on a floor with a lot of other children. The doctors came through asking for our names and other information, such as where we lived and who our parents were. When they got to me, I realized I didn’t have any answers for them,” Serrure continued, gaze locking onto his hands as he pulled at one of the pills on the blanket, the piece of fabric refusing to come off despite only being connected by a couple of threads.

“I’m sorry,” Thor said softly. “I couldn’t imagine- Someone should have been there for you,” he murmured almost guiltily and Serrure shook his head.

“I can take care of myself,” he told Thor, looking over at him slightly indignantly. He hadn’t been telling the other because he’d wanted pity. “The doctors didn’t know of any other cases where people had returned without their memories. They let me stay in the hospital and gave me a deck of cards to play with. I taught myself a few tricks after the nurses showed them to me and a few others I worked out on my own. The floor began to clear out as the other children went home until I was the only one left who wasn’t there because they were ill. I overheard the doctors talking about what to do with me. Afterwards I asked one of the nurses what they’d been talking about. They were going to send me somewhere to live with strangers who would look after me for as long as they could before they’d send me somewhere else and then it would keep repeating until I was adopted or of age. I pretended I didn’t mind and after they put me to bed for the night I left. I took the cards with me when I did. Since then I’ve lived on the streets. Or I did until I was brought to live up here.” Thor didn’t look much happier at hearing that but he at least didn’t try to offer any more apologies for things he couldn’t have fixed to begin with, instead changing the subject. 

“Why was that other boy so upset with you?” he asked and Serrure frowned as he thought over how best to explain it. He was a little surprised the other hadn’t already figured it out, to be honest. 

“Enzo helped me out back when I first started living on the streets. Because of that he expected me to repay him. You know, giving him a cut if I earned a lot or helping him out with his own scams. I was the distraction while Enzo would pick people’s pockets. He probably saw my being here as holding out on him. It didn’t help that Ikol hurt him right before I was brought here. You need to be pretty dexterous to pick pockets effectively and since it looks like his hand might have gotten infected...” Serrure trailed off with a slight wince. “Those things combined probably just pushed him off the edge. I was going to make a run for it, before you got here. He’s not someone to mess with,” he added, biting his lip. “I guess if you stick around for a bit I might not have to,” he noted, shooting Thor a nervous smile. 

“Aye. I promise to stay around for as long as you need me to,” Thor vowed, a little more seriously than was probably necessary but Serrure ignored it. Everything about Thor seemed a little over the top at times, but it was part of who the other was. He was starting to find that it was more amusing than weird. 

“Thank you,” he told Thor sincerely, smile becoming truer as he relaxed. Even if the other didn’t stay for forever it would still be longer than he’d originally had. Which gave him more time to learn about the secrets behind what had brought both of them here. Maybe that would help if he needed to make a run for it further down the road. 

Thor nodded and the two were silent for a few moments before he somewhat awkwardly changed the subject again. “How much do you know about gardening?” he asked and Serrure stared at him before bursting into laughter at the seemingly random topic. That didn’t stop the two of them from spending the remainder of the afternoon on the subject, Serrure’s phone out as they looked up what one would need to get started.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks to everyone who reviewed! I really appreciate hearing what you think of my story! Hopefully everyone continues to stay safe!  
> Madlenita- Yeah, I felt bad for Enzo too. :D A little more so after this chapter as well. Honestly, he wasn't supposed to play a big role initially but he kept coming back... I definitely didn't want what happened to him to be Serrure's fault but I did want him to feel responsible for it in a way. In the comics, kid Loki always had the best of intentions but things didn't work out because of who he was so I was trying to capture that in a way. Hope you enjoyed this chapter, although I'm not very good at fight scenes.  
> Althea- Thank you so much! I'm glad you liked Rocket; to be honest, he and the rest of the Guardians are hard to capture. I struggle writing them so much because they are such morally ambiguous characters with lots of facets to them. I hope you liked this chapter!  
> juicymats- I'm glad to hear you like it so much! I agree with you on JiM. After I read it I knew I wanted to write something with kid Loki in it. Problem is, I've really only read JiM and AoA, so I couldn't easily set something in the comic world. There would have been so many continuity issues... At least with the MCU I have some room (for now). Again, I'm glad you liked the Guardians. They're very hard for me to write and get their voices down so I'm glad to hear people like them so far! There's also just too many of them for me to keep track of sometimes... I hope you enjoy this chapter!  
> WishingForMyHogwartsLetter- Not going to lie, for this fic I had to research texting abbreviations. I think what you wrote means a broken heart? If so, I'm sorry but maybe this chapter will make it a little better? :D If it means something else, ignore the above. ;) As you can see, I have managed to master emojis. Maybe I should just use those instead...


	12. Growing Roots

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Another chapter! I hope everyone enjoys it. Keep staying safe, especially now that places are starting to open up more. I officially start working 5 days a week this Friday (for ~12 hours a day) so again, updates might not be the same time every week but I'll try to let you know about when to expect the next one. The next update will be around Monday/Tuesday next week since those are my days off.

Thor sat back as Serrure finally drifted off. It was late and he probably should have been heading back to the apartment, but he’d managed to convince the hospital to allow him to stay. He felt bad about everything his brother had gone through because of his absence. How would things have been different had he been there from the start? His younger brother would not have had to live on the streets, for one. 

Still, loathe as he was to leave the bedside he needed to call Valkyrie to find out what could be done to help keep his brother safe in case any other thugs came looking for him. She knew more about how Midgard worked than he did and would at least be able to point him in the right direction. 

Pulling out some of the money he had in his pocket, he was soon feeding it into one of the pay phones, glad for the fact that he’d picked up some things about Midgardian technology during his stay here. Dialing the number she’d given him, he was soon waiting as the phone rang.

“Hello?” Came the familiar, if tired voice and he swallowed. 

“Hey. It’s me. Thor,” he managed lamely. 

“Thor? What are you doing? Everything okay?” Valkyrie asked, suddenly sounding a lot more awake. “Is it Lackey? Did he remember anything?” she added and Thor made a faint noise. 

“Nay. He was attacked by some street thugs. I was able to get there in time but I fear that, should this happen again, my brother could be hurt. More so than he was. Is there anything our allies might be able to do to help keep him safe when I am not around?” He hated admitting his own weakness like this but if it made the difference between keeping Loki safe and losing him again he would admit to anything.

After a moment of silence, Valkyrie spoke up. “Yeah, I can look into something. Let me call Pepper. I think Stark gave his security system to some kid so I can get his contact info from her and we’ll go from there,” she said. “And Thor? I’m sorry this happened. Lackey is going to be fine. We both know how resourceful he is,” she added, Thor managing a nod. When had tears started to come so easily? He hadn’t cried when Loki had died on the Statesman, not that there had been time to do so before the ship had been destroyed around him. He didn’t remember really crying until after Thanos’s head had been separated from his body, but that didn’t make any sense. After all, he wasn’t upset about that.

“Thank you,” he forced out roughly, belatedly realizing she couldn’t see him nodding. “I have to go. I promised I wouldn’t leave him,” he added hastily, glancing back in the direction of the child’s room. 

“Right. You go on back to him, big guy. I’ll handle things on my end,” she said firmly. “Take care of yourselves,” There was a click followed by beeping. Placing the phone back on the cradle, Thor was soon returning to his brother’s side. Sinking down onto the chair beside the bed, he was soon resting his head in his hands. He couldn’t stop them from shaking. What if those bullies had accidentally killed Loki? His brother had only just been returned to him and already his life had been threatened. After a moment he reached out, sliding his hand into Loki’s. With the reminder that his brother was still alive warming his palm, he finally drifted off to a fitful sleep.

* * *

Going back to school after being in the hospital for nearly three days was strange. Serrure was almost taken aback by how normal everything seemed. Focusing on his classes was harder than normal and he kept finding himself thinking back to his talks with Thor in the hospital with a wistful feeling. He’d learned more just from talking to the other than he was in class. While a little… unconventional, Thor really knew a lot about science. Sometimes the way he talked made it sound like he had seen more than what was possible on Earth, something which piqued Serrure’s curiosity. 

That was why, as soon as school was over, he hurried back to his apartment. He was nearly back when his phone suddenly rang. Jumping, he fumbled to pull it out. Peter. “Hey. What’s up?” he asked as he answered, slowing his pace. 

“Uh, not much. Just going to ask you the same thing. Are you okay?” Peter asked and Serrure frowned slightly. 

“Yes. Why?” How had the other found out? He supposed that, given both of their connections to Stark Industries, it was entirely possible that the other had found out from them but why would they bother so much? It likely had something to do with whoever his guardian was. Another reason to be glad that he didn’t have to leave so suddenly, he supposed. 

“Well, just heard something from Mrs. Stark. I wanted to make sure you were doing alright. It sounded like you were in the hospital for a bit,” Peter said and Serrure grimaced.

“You heard about that, too?” he asked before shaking his head. “It was just a little concussion. That’s all. Thor kept me from being hurt more than that.” 

“Thor?” Peter exclaimed. Why was he so surprised? If Thor had also been sponsored by Stark Industries wouldn’t he have heard of him? Or was the other surprised for another reason? Before he had time to dwell on it further, though, Peter spoke up again. “Well, glad someone was able to help you,” he said quickly. “Just wanted to be sure you’re okay. Gotta go.” 

“See you,” Serrure said slowly, although the other had already hung up. He’d probably been calling from class. Why couldn’t he bring himself to fully believe that was the only reason for the quick goodbye? Ducking through the gate, he paused as he entered the courtyard outside of his apartment. It looked different from when he’d left that morning. A bench had been placed underneath the tree, perfectly positioned for the best view of the small space. The biggest eye-grabber was Thor himself, sitting on the ground next to a freshly turned patch of dirt with various plants in plastic containers surrounding him as he squinted at the small tag on the one in his hands. 

“What are you doing?” Serrure finally asked, curiosity getting the better of him as he stepped forward, noting Ikol perched on the ground next to the other. He shouldn’t be jealous of a bird but seeing the two sitting together left him feeling left out in a way which was absolutely ridiculous. Ikol abruptly shook its head, taking to the air and Serrure had to hastily lift a hand to give him a place to land. 

“After our talk about gardening I thought it might be nice to give it a try. You are welcome to join me,” Thor offered, looking so hopeful that even had he been disinclined Serrure would have probably agreed anyway. 

“Sure. Let me drop my things off and I’ll be right back out,” Serrure told Thor with a smile, quickly pulling out his key and dropping his things just inside the door before returning outside. Moving to join Thor, Ikol now perched on his shoulder, he was soon sitting on the ground next to him. “Why are you interested in gardening?” he asked, curious. 

Thor hesitated and Serrure watched as something dark seemed to fill his gaze. “A long time ago someone very close to me used to have a garden. She would tend to it every day and my brother eventually joined her once he was old enough. They both told me that the work was peaceful, that it helped to ground you, but I ignored them. I thought it beneath me and preferred to focus on other things. After her death I wished I had joined them after all. Anything to have given me more time with her.” His voice was tight as he finished speaking, water welling up in his eyes, but not yet falling down his cheeks as he sat there, the plants forgotten as he stared off into space, obviously back in the garden he’d spoken of. 

Serrure hesitated for a moment, not wanting to pull him back immediately before finally reaching out. “I’m sorry,” he said softly. “You didn’t have to tell me. I shouldn’t have asked.” Mind you, it wasn’t a question that one would normally know to avoid. Still, as Thor blinked, the tears falling down his cheeks as he turned towards Serrure, he figured that maybe the other needed someone to listen. He’d mentioned that he’d wanted someone to talk to before, after all. “Can you show me how?” he asked Thor, gesturing to the plants in his hands and the other managed a weak laugh. 

“We shall have to learn together, I’m afraid. I had learned a very long time ago and… And things were much different then,” he replied and it was Serrure’s turn to laugh. 

“Okay,” he agreed, laughter turning into giggles as he picked up one of the plants. Pulling out his phone he called up directions for what to do before carefully teasing everything out of the pot. Thor watched him before following his lead. The two were soon working side-by-side in comfortable silence. Serrure finally spoke up after almost an hour had passed. “This is nice, isn’t it?” he asked, Thor humming in agreement. 

“Aye. It is peaceful,” he said after a moment. From Serrure’s shoulder, Ikol made a faint noise before hopping down and scratching at the ground. Its gaze was focused on Thor as it did so and Serrure forced down a surge of jealousy. 

“Looks like he wants to help,” he noted, reaching out to help the bird make the hole deeper. Thor freed another plant, placing it in the hole once they were done. He continued to hold it as they filled the hole around it back in with dirt. “Who was she?” Serrure couldn’t help but ask as he patted down the soil. 

Thor hesitated, gaze distant. “My mother. One of the kindest souls I have ever met. She was… She died before the Snap.” The magpie’s head had also dropped at the words, the bird seeming to be mirroring Thor’s sadness.

“Oh.” Well, curiosity did kill the cat. “I wish I could remember my mother. Yours sounds wonderful.” he blurted out before wincing. He just kept digging himself a deeper hole. To his surprise, though, Thor didn’t look too upset by his words as he smiled over at Serrure. 

“I am sure you will, one day,” he said confidently. Although he wasn’t sure how the other could be so certain, Serrure was soon smiling back, Thor’s confidence contagious. 

“Right,” he agreed, leaning back against the other and resting his head on Thor’s shoulder as they sat together, looking at the freshly planted greenery. He thought Thor’s mother probably would have liked it here. Ikol shook itself before hopping into his lap and settling down, seeming to watch the clouds go by before Thor finally stirred. 

“I did not mean to keep you from your homework for so long,” he told Serrure apologetically. “Here, I can plant the last one while you go and do your studying.” Serrure barely managed not to let his disappointment show. He did need to work more on his extra-study project, after all. Gaze landing on the plant, though, he suddenly had an idea. 

“Wait here,” he told Thor, scrambling to his feet. Ikol let out an irritated croak as it was disturbed, hopping into the air and circling overhead before landing on a tree branch. Racing into his apartment, Serrure dug through the kitchen until he found a large glass. Returning outside, he was soon carefully transplanting the small plant into the cup. “There. Now you can care for it in your apartment,” he told Thor. “They do well in pots so if we just find a bigger one before it grows too much I bet it’ll do fine.” It wasn’t the same as a garden but it would maybe give Thor something to look at to remind him of his mother even when the weather didn’t allow for gardening outdoors. Tears welled up in Thor’s eyes seconds before the other suddenly enveloped him in a bone crushing hug. Serrure barely managed to keep his grip on the plant, surprised at the sudden contact washing over him before he tentatively wrapped his arms back around Thor. 

“Thank you,” Thor managed finally, pulling back as he gently took the plant. Carrying it as though it was a priceless crystal glass instead of a regular cup with a plant inside, he’d soon disappeared into his apartment. Serrure brushed the residual traces of dirt off of his clothes as he started to head back inside to focus on his homework when a sound from Ikol made him pause. The magpie was peering in the direction of Thor’s apartment before its gaze returned to Serrure, head cocked. 

Ikol had never led him wrong, even if he wasn’t entirely certain what the bird wanted him to do. Moving over to the other apartment, he hesitantly knocked on the door frame, not wanting to just walk in. Thor appeared quickly, probably having been on his way back to close the door after dropping the plant off wherever he was intending to place it. “Actually, I could use some help with my homework. If you don’t mind,” Serrure managed lamely and Thor lit up. 

“Of course. Come in,” he exclaimed, gesturing for Serrure to enter. Moving forward, Serrure took in the apartment. The furniture was very similar to his own in terms of quality, if not in style, a fact which made him wonder if it came with the apartment or if Stark Industries had paid for it. Thor’s apartment had a different vibe to it, more crowded feeling than Serrure’s due to the large pieces of furniture filling the space. “What is your homework?” Thor asked as he sank onto the couch. Serrure was soon perching on one of the chairs in the room, pulling it a little closer so as to sit across from Thor. 

“Well, it’s not homework exactly,” he told the other hesitantly. “I’m in a class where we’re allowed to research subjects that interest us. At the end of the year I’m expected to present something relating to what I found. I’ve chosen a topic to look into, only… I’m not sure where to go from here,” Serrure said, twining his fingers together in his lap. 

Thor thought that over before speaking. “Why don’t you explain what you’re doing to me and maybe I can help you figure out what it is you may be missing,” he suggested and Serrure brightened slightly. 

“Okay.” After their discussions in the hospital he had no doubts that Thor would probably know something about illusion tech. At the very least he might be able to follow along well enough for his suggestions to be worth listening to. “I want to look more into the virtual technology that was used in Italy and which Stark Industries perfected. I think there is a way to make it better,” he told the other, Thor starting to laugh. 

Waving off Serrure’s confused look, he shook his head. “I know not of what occurred in Italy but I may be… familiar with Stark’s technology,” he allowed. “How exactly do you think to improve upon it?”

“That’s what I don’t know…” Serrure admitted. “My friend Peter sent me some information about how M. Stark built his machines. I think I understand most of how they are put together and I know how I want to improve the technology, I simply cannot figure out what to do to get the results I’m looking for.” Sometimes he wasn’t sure there was a technological answer for what he was looking for.

“So how do you think it could be improved?” Thor asked calmly, leaning back into the couch. Ikol, who’d apparently followed Serrure in, perched on the back of the chair and Serrure was relieved that the bird at least hadn’t left him to do this alone. 

“Well, there should be a way to make it smaller while still having the same effect.” he said hesitantly. “Something that could be held in the palm of a hand at least” he added. “I’m not explaining it very well…” He had such a clear picture in his mind of the effects he was thinking of but when it came to describing them or figuring out how to make them work he was lost. The feeling that what he wanted was more than simple illusion tech was also hard to ignore.

Thor shook his head slightly. “No. Sometimes it can take a while for thoughts to be put into words. You will get better at describing what it is you are looking for as you better understand it. How did you explain this project to your teacher?”

“I told her I wanted to research how to make illusion tech better, that’s all. That I thought maybe by combining the tricks that make slight of hand games more effective would help. Only I can’t figure out exactly how to make the two work together,” Serrure said a little despondently before brightening. “I can show you what I showed her. Wait a sec,” he called, jumping to his feet and darting out the door, quickly slipping to his apartment and finding his deck of cards. Returning to Thor’s apartment he began pulling out his usual set of cards. “What do you know about Three Card Monte?” he asked and the other shook his head. 

“Nothing, I am afraid. Is it a game?” Thor asked. “Steve, one of my friends, once taught me poker but therein lies my knowledge of Mid- of card games, I am afraid.” 

“It is a game of a sort. Probably more similar to black jack in that you are playing against the dealer, though,” Serrure said. Quickly explaining how it worked, he was soon showing Thor the same tricks he’d shown his teacher, hopeful that the other would be able to put words to what it was Serrure was looking for. Although the other was initially confused, Thor abruptly straightened after the second round.

“Seidr,” he whispered and Serrure paused as he stared at the other. 

“What?” he asked in confusion. 

“Seidr. I suppose you might call it magic,” Thor said carefully, eyeing Serrure. His expression was a mix of emotions Serrure wasn’t sure how to read. 

“Magic?” Serrure repeated incredulously. “It’s just a card trick. Magic, real magic, doesn’t exist and even if it did I wouldn’t have it.” 

Thor, however, was starting to look more and more animated, the other emotions falling away. “No, you do have it; I am certain of it. My mother taught my brother and me how to use it, although I quickly grew out of such lessons,” he said, a slight wince indicating to Serrure that maybe the ‘growing out’ had been similar to what had happened with the gardening. “I might remember enough to teach you,” the other offered and Serrure’s attention was caught. 

Although he hesitated before responding, Serrure already knew what his answer was going to be. If this was the answer he’d been looking for, the part of himself he kept feeling like he was missing, he couldn’t say anything but yes. “You can teach me?” he asked finally. 

“Aye. We can go over the exercises and work from there,” Thor said eagerly. 

“Okay, then,” Serrure agreed slightly hesitantly in the face of the other’s animated energy. “Is there anyone else who uses Seidr?” he asked after a moment, curious. He regretted the question almost instantly when the growingly familiar look crossed Thor’s face before the other made an attempt to rally himself. 

“No. There used to be, but…” he trailed off and Serrure quickly jumped in to change the subject. 

“How do you get started?” he asked and Thor was soon distracted as he began explaining.

“It is similar to meditation at first. You close your eyes and ground yourself in where you are. From there you turn your gaze inward and look at yourself. Seidr is a part of who you are, so it is connected to your sense of being. You might feel it in different ways.” Serrure slowly nodded. That could explain the warm feeling he got in his hands whenever he played his card tricks, especially when he was trying to win. If he had been unconsciously using this Seidr to win it was possible. “Wielding Seidr is not always a simple task. It is easy to overstretch yourself if you try something beyond your abilities. I will see if I cannot find a book to teach you with,” Thor continued.

Serrure nodded excitedly in response. “Can we try tonight?” he asked but Thor was already shaking his head. 

“Nay. It is best to work with Seidr when you are most refreshed while you are getting used to it,” he said, Serrure deflating. “Perhaps tomorrow, before you leave for school?” Thor suggested upon seeing the younger boy’s expression and Serrure nodded. 

“That would be fine,” he agreed, getting to his feet. “I should get going if I’m to be here that early,” he continued. Had Peter known? He’d suggested looking into the illusion tech in the first place, after all, which had led Thor to figure out that Serrure had magic. How would he know, though? Thor stood to see him out and Serrure peered at him before speaking up again. “Have you considered getting a new sweatshirt?” he asked, eyeing the hoodie which was now covered with dirt on top of the other stains. Surely there were newer ones in the apartment. “If you want, I’m doing a load of laundry tonight. I can throw it in with my clothes,” he offered. Or wash it alone. Or maybe just pretend a wild dog or something had run off with it. 

“Oh.” Thor stared down at the hoodie as though seeing it for the first time. “I-I suppose I should wash it,” he agreed finally. Serrure waited for him to take it off before grabbing the material between two fingers, nose wrinkling slightly as he smelled it before taking in the equally dirty shirt underneath. Was Thor taking care of himself? He’d been here for how long without really changing clothes or washing the ones he had on. While he hadn’t bathed every day when he’d been living on the streets, Serrure had tried his best to stay as clean as possible. Once he’d moved into the apartment he’d relished in taking showers everyday and wearing clean clothes. Maybe he should look into the matter a little more to make sure his new friend was alright. 

“I can do another load tomorrow if you want to add the rest of your clothes then,” Serrure offered, already moving for the door. “Take care, Thor!” he called over his shoulder, already sliding his phone out of his pocket. Ikol flew to land on his shoulder before taking off again to fly ahead of him, apparently disgusted at the state of the hoodie.

“Good night Lo- Serrure,” Thor called after him, gently closing the door behind him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks to everyone for reading!   
> Cartlin (AcaciaJules)- Glad to see that you feel so strongly about the fic! I suppose you'll have to keep reading to see how Serrure handles everything.   
> arcidaevi- Yeah, it sure will be. ;) Hope you liked the little bit of their past I mentioned in this chapter!   
> Madlenita- I thought it would be a good way to have Serrure start to trust Thor. I'm so glad you still like where the story is going and I hope you continue to read!  
> Althea- :D Your review made me really happy. I'm glad you like how they're both learning from each other. Neither one is perfect and I wanted to show that. I'm glad that that came across! There's a lot for them to learn from one another.


	13. Nestmaking 101

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Actually on time! :D I hope everyone enjoys!

It had taken a while to figure it out but once he had Serrure felt the urge to hit his head on something. It was actually pretty obvious: depression. It explained a lot, such as why talking about his family upset Thor so much. Of course, it didn’t tell him how to help Thor. Not wanting to take away something which seemed like a comfort blanket to the other, Serrure had opted to simply wash the hoodie as many times as was necessary to get the smell out as opposed to simply discarding it somewhere. Currently the piece of clothing was going through the third cycle and Serrure was wondering if he would even have it cleaned, let alone dried, before he went to bed. 

Turning back to his phone, he bit his lip. He didn’t know Thor well enough to suggest that the other go to a counselor or seek medical help. He wasn’t even sure if Thor himself realized what was going on with him. He could listen to the other and try to be there for him as much as Thor needed him to be. In doing so, maybe he could help the other start to take care of himself again. The process was daunting, but if he didn’t do it there wasn’t anyone else around who seemed like they would, not without maybe taking Thor away. He didn’t want that. It was nice to come home and have someone be there, waiting for him. Was he a bad person for putting his happiness above Thor’s potential well-being? He really hoped not. 

Serrure moved to sit on the couch, continuing to scroll down the page before pausing as he reached a section that looked like it might be helpful. He’d already decided to do the first bullet point, being there for Thor if the other needed him. The second, having realistic expectations, was probably going to be harder to stick to. He wasn’t patient at the best of times and while he rationally knew from what he’d been reading that depression wasn’t something to get over in a day he probably wasn’t prepared for how long it could actually take. Skimming down, he noted a section which said to encourage activity. That was more of a possibility and something he could do. That and pitching in to help Thor out when he needed it. If the other couldn’t do his own laundry, Serrure would do it for him. He’d have to wait and see if Thor could make his own meals (although he had a feeling that was something the other could handle). 

Sighing, he lowered the phone and peered up at the magpie who’d been looking over his shoulder from the arm of the couch. “We have a lot of work ahead of us,” he told Ikol, the bird bobbing its head in a nod. “It’d be good if we could get him out more often but I’ll be in school for most of the day,” he noted with a frown, sitting up and turning to face the bird as he spoke. He couldn’t skip, as much as he wanted to. After a few moments of silence, his gaze landed on the washing machine and he began to grin. Well, he had a plan for tomorrow, at least. Now he just needed to come up with things for the remainder of the week until the weekend, when he could get Thor to go and do something with him. Pulling out his phone again, he was soon calling up the internet.

~

Thor didn’t get much sleep that night. He spent the majority of the evening trying to remember everything his mother had taught him about Seidr. The problem lay in that his own Seidr was obviously more elemental in nature and he hadn’t truly learned to control it. He hadn’t even known it was his until Ragnarok. There were vague memories of being told to sit down and turn his focus inward to learn to recognize his own magic, but for the most part his mother and Loki had usually worked together while his sibling had been learning. How would one recognize their own magic? Would Loki know upon feeling it or would he be relying on Thor to tell him the difference? What would he do if he did only to find out that Thor had just as little idea as he did? He didn’t want to let his brother down, especially not after offering to teach him, but the task seemed impossible. 

Maybe he shouldn’t have told Loki about Seidr, a topic he knew next to nothing about. Before his death, Loki had been a seiðmenn. If he followed along the same path he would soon surpass anything Thor could teach him. How could he not have mentioned it, though? He’d known what Loki was talking about when he spoke of something missing in his project the instant he’d seen the card trick and realized his brother was unconsciously using Seidr. 

The last time his brother had talked to him about his magic he’d described it as the feeling of being a part of something much larger than himself, a sense of elation and constant wonder each time he used his Seidr to create something. That had been centuries ago, before Thor had joined the other warriors in teasing Loki for using a woman’s art. 

Pacing around his apartment for what had to be going on the hundredth time at least, Thor dug his nails into his palms, mittens the only thing keeping him from drawing blood. Loki deserved a better brother than him and the most he could do was try to be there this time around and correct the mistakes he’d once made. He was scared he’d mess up still, despite looking back and trying to correct his previous errors. Like many, Thor had always thought Loki to be making up the many trials he claimed to have undergone at the hands of everyone, including their friends. Or Thor’s friends; Loki had declared that they’d never truly been his. Would he even have spent time with them if not for Thor? Did Loki have friends here? If Thor did help him regain his memory and then brought him to Asgard how would he feel about leaving them? He only realized he was panicking when he noticed his breath coming in short, rapid pants. 

Forcing himself to stop pacing, Thor closed his eyes and tried to focus on taking deep breaths. Rocket had first figured out what the attacks were when he’d seen Thor having one on the Benatar. It had been only a week after their departure from Midgard and despite his enthusiasm at the start of the journey Thor hadn’t been able to find the energy to leave the bunk he’d been given that entire time. The rabbit had delivered food for him and he’d eaten it and more on the rare occasion he did drag himself to the kitchen for a midnight snack. He’d been thinking about how he should be up, should be joining the Guardians on their jobs only for the memory of everyone he’d failed to flood his mind. What was the point in helping after how badly he’d messed up with Thanos? He’d let everyone down. 

Rocket had entered to tell him they were back from their latest mission and had found him gasping for air, unable to catch his breath despite the lack of exercise. He’d thought he was dying, of course, and had felt almost excited about that prospect; maybe, despite the manner of his death, his previous deeds of valor would be enough to see him to Vahalla where he could be reunited with his family and friends. Those dreams had been squashed when Rocket had bluntly told him he was having a panic attack. Thor had attempted to deny it but the rabbit hadn’t listened to him, simply insisting that Thor take deep breaths and copy him. After a few more minutes Thor’s breathing had begun to settle back into its normal rhythm but he’d been left shaking by the experience. As a warrior he’d prided himself on having control over his body and even with the gain in weight he’d always known (or thought he’d known) that, should he desire it, he could lose it. The panic attack had left him reeling at the utter lack of control he’d had to stop it. Rocket hadn’t told anyone, much to his immense gratitude, and the rabbit had even helped him whenever he’d noticed Thor was about to have one. It had been nearly a month since he’d last had an attack and the sudden reappearance was terrifying. He’d thought he was done with these. What was wrong with him that they kept coming back?

He wasn’t sure how long he stood there, breathing deeply, but when he opened his eyes he could see faint traces of light starting to make their way in through the window. Was it really morning already? A quick glance at the clock confirmed that. Moving to his room, he was soon pulling out one of his clean shirts. He didn’t really see a need to change his but Loki had offered to do it with his laundry so it would probably be strange for him to decline only to not wash it himself afterwards. 

Once he was dressed in clean clothes, the dirty ones in a bag, Thor moved to the kitchen. He was soon carefully cooking a variety of food, not sure what Loki might feel like eating. He’d mostly made food for himself during the blip (Korg ate rocks and who knew what Meik ate) so this would be his first time actually cooking for someone else. Someone he wanted to impress. It took him three tries after that thought to not burn the toast. He’d just finished hiding the evidence of his failures and setting the food on the table in the kitchen when there was a knock at the door. 

“Thor? It’s me!” Loki called and Thor hurried to answer, giving the other what he hoped was a bright smile. His brother was standing there, Ikol perched on one shoulder with an expression on its face that seriously resembled a smile. 

“Good morning L-Serrure,” he greeted. He was getting better at calling the child by the name he had chosen for himself, at least. From the look his brother and the bird both shot him, they’d seen through Thor’s attempt at appearing normal. 

“Did you sleep at all last night?” Serrure simply asked almost conversationally before promptly being distracted, much to Thor’s immense relief. “Is that bacon?” he added, sniffing at the air. The magpie was also looking interested, almost excitedly hopping on the boy’s shoulder at the mention of the food. 

“Aye. I figured if you were going to be coming over early the least I could do is make you breakfast,” Thor told him, smile growing a little more real and less strained as Serrure let out a delighted cry, taking off for the kitchen. 

“You’re the best!” he informed Thor cheerfully. “I haven’t really bothered to learn how to cook myself. Most of the food I eat is delivered. I just have to reheat them, which isn’t the same. For breakfast I’ve just been having oatmeal or granola. The hospital had bacon, though. It’s definitely the best breakfast food ever.” 

“If you’d like you’re welcome to come over for breakfast in the mornings,” Thor offered instantly. He wanted to be able to help Loki with something that didn’t relate to their past. It would feel a little less like he was using the boy to get his brother back. 

Serrure eyed him out of the corner of his eyes and Thor could almost see thoughts flickering behind his gaze before he nodded. “Okay. Then I’ll do your laundry in return,” he suggested. “I do it every couple of days so you can just throw your stuff in.” Nodding his acceptance,Thor was soon sitting across from the boy, watching as the other scarfed down his food even as Thor ate his own. Ikol was given its own pieces of bacon on a paper towel, the bird eagerly eating them. 

Finishing first, Serrure was soon sitting back. “Okay, so how do you learn to use Seidr?” he asked and Thor tried not to show the surge of panic as he replied.

“Well, you start by grounding yourself, like I said last night. Close your eyes and sit still. Any position is fine as long as it’s comfortable for you. It’s okay if it takes you a few tries to find the right position. Eventually, once this part becomes instinct, you won’t need to go through these steps to access your Seidr.” 

“If I have to go through all this effort to access the magic, why can I use it without doing any of it when I do the card tricks?” Serrure asked and Thor was suddenly very glad for the night spent musing over what Loki might ask. 

“Because you were accessing it subconsciously,” he told the other. “You would never be able to get it to do what you want when you want it to. It probably doesn’t work every time either, am I right? I bet people can sometimes guess the right card if you get distracted.” Serrure flushed red but nodded. 

“If I was interrupted or distracted by something they could,” he admitted. “I always thought I’d just messed up while passing the cards.” Settling back in the chair, he closed his eyes. “So if I can learn this I could do the trick whenever I wanted to?” he asked and Thor nodded before quickly speaking. 

“Aye. That trick and others besides,” he said, watching as the boy’s eyes scrunched up in an obvious attempt to reach out for the magic. “Relax. You won’t get it by grabbing for it. Seidr is… It’s like water. The more you try to grab the more it will slip through your fingers, but if you let yourself relax then it will gather.” He could vaguely hear his mother’s voice saying those words to him. Serrure nodded his understanding and Thor’s spirits lifted slightly. “For now just try to recognize and tune out your surroundings. Work on turning your focus inwards,” he instructed. Ikol watched, having moved to perch on the back of the boy’s chair as it relaxed, feathers fluffing slightly. 

They sat there for almost thirty minutes, Thor trying to offer gentle encouragement and advice before Serrure’s alarm went off, signaling that he needed to go to class. Gathering his things in a whirlwind of movement, the boy was soon turning towards Thor with wide eyes. 

“Oh, by the way, I’m really sorry but Ikol grabbed the bag with your hoodie in it for some reason. I tried to get him to come back with it but when he did he left the bag in the tree outside,” he told Thor earnestly. “I’m too short to reach it but I figured out you might have better luck.” 

Thor stared at him before following the boy out and staring at where the bag was just out of arm’s reach in the tree branches. Ikol flew past him to perch on the branch, beak opening in what could have been a parody of a laugh, a series of sounds mimicking snickering emerging. Waving, Serrure took off for his school, leaving Thor to figure out how to get the hoodie down himself.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just as a note: Serrure's plan to help Thor is definitely not recommended. Please do not do this! In case it wasn't obvious.  
> Althea- :D Thanks for your comment! I'm glad I seem to be portraying everything well so far. I didn't want to rush from action to action and skim over the relationship between the two since that is important.   
> Espana- I'm glad you gave it a shot! I read JiM before watching the movies so I wanted to do a combination of the two. Hopefully it continues to live up to your expectations!  
> Madlenita- What I liked about the movies was how they both relied on each other so often. That


End file.
